


C U R I O S I T Y

by TheTruemeK



Category: Invader Zim
Genre: Abduction, Aliens, F/M, Irken Empire, Original Characters - Freeform, SIR-Units, Tallest Purple, Tallest Red, UFO - Freeform, Violence, Xenophilia, alien - Freeform, invader zim - Freeform, non-con
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-07-28
Updated: 2018-02-04
Packaged: 2018-02-10 20:37:40
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 114
Words: 442,520
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2039292
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheTruemeK/pseuds/TheTruemeK
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>What would you do?<br/>Snatched from your family, your friends and everything you've ever known and loved... Facing something alien, someone who wants to hurt them, to hurt you. There is no way back, only the black, starry void ahead and suddenly the monster who abducted you becomes the only thing keeping you sane...<br/>What would you do?</p><p>This is the story of Jenna, a normal young woman, living a normal human life. Until the day her planet attracts the attention of a danger far greater than humanity could've ever imagined. And she finds herself under the stare of crimson eyes, without mercy, but with something far more dangerous gleeming in them: Curiosity</p><p><b>Updates every second Sunday!</b> </p><p><b>Check out the C U R I O S I T Y Playlists on my Spotify page: https://open.spotify.com/user/thetruemek</b><br/>►Jenna◄<br/>►CRIMSON EYES CODED MIND◄<br/>► The Horror of our Love◄ (Thank you Helena! ♥)<br/>►A Sky Full of Stars◄ (Again, thx Helena!)<br/>►Pakrit | Unlimited Power◄<br/>►Telepathic Intimacies◄</p><p>  <a href="https://twitter.com/CURIOSITYupdate">C U R I O S I T Y  Twitter</a></p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> C U R I O S I T Y is actually the first work I've ever decided to publish~ so I'm pretty excited how things will go from here!  
> Some of you might know it already from my deviantart page, where I uploaded some pictures I've drawn while creating this story.  
> English isn't my native tongue, so please note me about any typose, etc. in case you find them, I can only do so much :) 
> 
> I hope you'll enjoy C U R I O S I T Y!
> 
> \- meK

****_Curiosity killed the cat_

_That’s how it goes._

_But remember this:_

_Satisfaction brought it back_

* * *

 

 

## Prologue

 If you had to guess, you probably would come up with ten liters of sweat that ran over every single back in the NASA headquarter at this moment. With overstrained and red eyes the personnel was staring at the giant screen covering almost the entire wall in front of them.

 Only there was nothing to be seen; nothing except for a small red light, flashing every 5 seconds before fading away again. You could hear every hard gulp out of over 50 throats, and even the slightest hawk sounded too loud in the tensed atmosphere.

 Prof. Dr. Jackson, the operation’s leading astrophysicist, yanked on his tie for the dozenth time although it was already dangling losened around his massive neck, drenched in sweat like his shirt. But nobody paid attention to the sweating, highly overweight man. Everyone was still staring at the red light.

 It meant that the Rover’s camera was still in stand-by; which could bode anything at this point. The most possible case (and most wished for) would have been that the Rover was still on his way to Mars. And then there were thousands of horrible scenarios; The Rover had crashed on the surface while the camera had somehow been left intact or it had missed its designated landing coordinates entirely and was drifting off into space, stuff like that.

The moment Jackson wanted to cry out in frustration a tech member gave a startled shout first and pointed with a shaking hand at the screen, which had just come to life. The red, blinking dot flashed faster, a deep humming sound came out of the speakers, swelling to a roar and suddenly the whole room was tinged in an orange light. It was so bright that they had to close their eyes for a second until it dimmed down into soft yellow and brown tones. At first, nobody dared to breathe… but as soon as they recognized what the screen was showing them, the silence was torn apart by cries and screams of joy. Fists punched the air, grown men clasped in each other’s arms while sobbing like children. Jackson took a shaking intake of air and had to sink on one of the chairs, crunching perilous under his weight. His chubby hand dabbed around on his forehead trying to remove the sudden outbreak of sweat, without any triumph.

They did it! The Rover “Curiosity” had successfully landed on the surface of Mars and reported in fully functional. The camera-feed was sending footage in full HD; many of the scientists and technicians broke out into awestricken “Oh”s and “Ah!”s as they were gathering around the giant screen.

Someone patted Jackson on his wide back and leaned in on him.

   “Well, boss? Don’t you wanna take your little one for a walk?” It was Corey, one of his best team members. He had improved the camera and adjusted it to fit the new Rover. Jackson grabbed the other man's hand and tried to make something of Corey’s words. His brain was still stunned by the current turn of events.

   “I… oh… yes, of course. Thank you, James… I need to… oh!” he all but fell off the chair trying to reach the control panel. Corey reflexively braced his feet against him and rebalanced the fat man with visible strain. “S-Sorry, I’m just so relieved.” Jackson said and turned a deep, blotchy red. James Corey laughed and patted his direct supervisor on the back again, but not without wiping his hands on his jeans afterwards.

    “We all are, Marc… we really are.” he huffed and watched as the Rover accelerated.

 


	2. Summer in the city

### Summer in the city

_One year after the launch of “Curiosity”_

  Jenna took off her sunglasses and twinkled lazily into the hot flash of light. The sun was shining down without any mercy but she didn’t mind the heat and the slight burn on her body. At least she would get tanned this summer; for real this time. With relish she stretched and rolled over on her belly, her fingers searching for the cord of her bikini top and opened the knot. To get at least a little bit of protection from the sun she arranged her long, brown hair on her face and closed her eyes.

It felt so good to enjoy the summer; though she was surrounded by numerous books lying in the grass, concerning anatomy, hemogram analysis and other medical reference books. Despite her holidays she studied on a frequent daily basis, eager to keep up the good grades she had been working for so hard. Her apprenticeship as a medical technical laboratory assistant demanded this kind of discipline.  But now the sun had fried her brain to the point where she just wanted to lay here and enjoy the rest of the day.

From the porch came a loud, deep woof and Jenna frowned slightly.

   “Tippet… shut up.” She growled and looked up to see why her dog was barking. Actually a stupid idea, she was nearly blind without her glasses so she rested her head back on the lounger, crossing her arms in front of her to get a good tan on her arms as well. Not a minute later, something cold and extremely wet pressed against her cheek and she giggled. “You stupid dog…” the young woman mumbled and scratched the big Dane behind one ear. “Go and enjoy the sun like I do why don’t ya?”

Tippet panted, sniffing on her arm and licking the sun balm off her hand. Then her four-legged-friend plodded into the house’s shadow and slumped on the grass with a content huff. Jenna sat up, fastened the cords of her bikini top and reached for her glasses. With a clear vision she gathered all her books and jumped up the two stairs to the house. Enough sun for today, one does not risk a sunburn when there’s a party to attend to. Humming softly she crossed the living room and the hallway. The cold tiles felt nice under her feet as she walked upstairs, just to stop in front of the mirror hanging on the wall across the staircase. Her arms and legs were nicely tanned but her shoulders and her nose were suffering from a light sunburn. Jenna crinkled her nose and picked some flaps of skin off it. So it was make-up for tonight after all. But then she smiled and continued the last meters towards her room. It was already 6 pm and there was still some time left to take a shower and get ready.

Summer in the city was the best time.

 

At 8 pm she heard a car slowing down and hurried down the stairs to tell her parents that she was going out now. They just nodded and told her (for the umpteenth time) to not forget to take her key.

Jenna did as she was told and slipped out the door. Her friends Carly and Lauren were waiting outside in Carly’s car. Lauren waved at her and opened the back door. She slumped on the backseat and leaned forward.

    “Alright, ladies: What’s the plan for tonight?” she asked and kissed both of them on the cheek while Carly peeled out, her blond, silk-like hair flowing in the wind. She loved driving fast and sometimes even foolhardily. Lauren turned her head around and shrugged.

   “Well, I was thinking about hanging out at the Ditch. You know, some of the gang will be there and I really wanna see ‘em. So, nothing special… the usual.” She answered her question. Lauren started grinning at Jenna. “And… you know what? My brother is going to be there, too. Just in case you wanna know, bella mia.” Lauren ducked and dodged Jenna’s blow.

For a year now the Italian beauty had been trying to hook Jenna up with her older brother Daniel but she was too busy to really be interested in him or a relationship in general. Sure, she liked Daniel but her school was a two hour drive from home and she didn't have the money for a place of her own. She spent most of the time on the road and only the weekends and the holidays meant free time (besides studying of course). This would make any relationship into a long-distance one, and those were meant to fail.

 Though she wasn’t actually uninterested, Daniel was pretty handsome and seemed to like her.

 She nodded and turned the window down to get some of the nice fresh air.

   “Sounds fun! I can’t wait to see everyone and I bet we’re going to see a lot of shooting stars again.”

 For the last two weeks the night sky was always alive with swarms of shooting stars although they hadn’t been announced on the news. Jenna was hoping that the showers would last somewhat longer. Almost romantic, she thought and laughed to herself.

 

### Part two

_Shooting stars_

The Ditch was a crossing of three forest roads surrounded by meadows and woods. Three cars were already parked on the gritty junction when the three young women arrived, one of the cars was playing music out of some huge speakers in the trunk.

Around the cars young adults and a few teenagers sat, drank and some were already weaving. Jenna hopped out of the car and was immediately greeted by everyone.

Funny, just a few years ago she had been a total loner hardly able to make any friends. When she had met Lauren and Carly for the first time during a project in High School she suddenly found herself a part of a vivid group shortly after. And after a while, she started to love it. Finally she could let go off her shyness and approach people without feeling self-conscious or even scared. Lauren had also gotten her to smoke, not the best influence apparently, but it made her feel even more secure when she was standing among other people smoking and just talking without having to worry what to do with her hands.

Now she smiled happily and returned their hugs and kisses until a wide chest blocked her view and she had to tilt her head back to notice Daniel’s eyes brighten up when they met her gaze. The good mood from the afternoon was still there and so she embraced him a little longer than usually.

Daniel smiled.

   “Well look who finally ditched the books to hang with the crowd!” he greeted her and patted her head like you would do with a child. Anyone else would have gotten an irritated look or even a punch treating her like this, but Daniel was the only one Jenna allowed to make fun of her shortness. Her height was one of the reasons she didn’t look like 22, her dorky behavior another.

Lauren’s brother passed her a cup of Vodka mixed with energy drink and they joined the others. Lauren and Carly were already dancing to the music, smoking and laughing; having a good time. The two of them were full-grown dorks most of the time, always giggling, talking and living in - what seemed - perpetual movement.

She still didn’t have the slightest clue how they’d managed to lure this quiet, introverted girl outside her save place and simply turned her inside out. But she was still so glad they did and sometimes Jenna felt a sudden wave of thankfulness and even melancholy crashing over her just thinking about it.

One of these waves seemed to impend and she quickly joined them in their dancing to shake the feeling.

It was getting darker, the booze all the better. Some had sloped off way too early but the main gang was still around, enjoying the simple things in life.  Jenna sank down on the spare tire in Daniel’s open trunk and was moving her head to the beat. She felt already dizzy. Daniel sat down next to her and fiddled with his new camcorder. Suddenly one of the other girls showed up; Amy, pale as ever, curled her black dyed hair around her fingers and leaned in on Daniel to watch him. But when he tried to take a video of her, she turned her head and screeched.

   “Augh, Danny! Stop it with this crap, you know I hate when you do that!” her high pitched voice rang painfully in Jenna’s ears and she rolled her eyes, disgusted by this display of ‘hard to get’.

Everyone knew Amy had a crush on Daniel but she was, to put it nice, a total bitch about it.

   “Well, I wouldn’t mind…” she stated and watched in bliss how Amy’s pale face went almost white before turning an unhealthy shade of red. But before she could shoot anything back, Daniel had turned on the camera and a little flashlight on top of it to get a better quality. Amy closed her open mouth and walked away as the two started fooling around in front of the camera.

Soon after that, Lauren and Carly came over to snatch the camcorder from Daniel to record some of their self-invented dances. Jenna grinned and risked a look over to Amy who was looking really upset but quickly turned away upon noticing the warning glare in those green eyes. While she didn’t want a relationship at the moment, Jenna felt the need to mark her territory; also she wouldn’t allow people like Amy to prey on a nice guy like Daniel, who was currently closing the small gap between them, pulling out his cellphone to take a picture now that the camcorder was gone. He seemed to have some trouble holding his phone steady and so she took it instead.

   “Woah, d’you know how this works?” he tossed in with an edge in his voice. He tended to get extremely nervous when giving his precious phone, camcorder, car (you name it) to a woman other than his sister. Jenna gave him her most charming smile.

      “Of course I know, stupid!” she calmed the nervous drunk. “You know very well I’m not like other girls.” By that she meant mostly Amy who had managed to drop Daniel’s previous phone a month ago. With practiced movements she unlocked the phone, opened the camera and held it in front of their faces. “Say ‘bella notte’!” she lilted and Daniel couldn’t help but put on his natural Italian smile before the flash struck them with blinding force. After Jenna was able to see again she studied the picture and nodded before handing him back his phone. “And it didn’t even turn out that bad.” She smirked, making him ruffle his feathers in feigning anger.

The sun had set and by now most of them were just lying around on the road. Jenna got up and started dancing by herself; rather enticingly. Not without shooting glances towards Daniel now and then.

She wasn’t actually hoping for anything to happen and was happy with putting people like Amy in their places; besides, Daniel hadn’t made any approaches himself.

Suddenly she felt a hand on her hip and turned around in surprise. He was standing behind her, smiling somewhat sheepishly. She cocked a brow but continued dancing, slower, Daniel moving with her.

An overwhelming feeling of victory rushed through her and she raised her arms to cross her fingers behind his nape as he placed his chin between her neck and shoulder. _Victory is mine, bitch!_ She thought with a gleeful side look to Amy who seemed on the brink of either crying or cutting Jenna’s throat with something rusty.

Daniel smiled against her neck and she turned her head to brush her lips over his cheek. Somewhere in the dark she could hear Lauren gasp for air and dragging Carly away from the two just to start giggling and sputter like a little girl. A drunk, little girl.

After the song was over Jenna turned around to him and slid her hands down on his chest.

   “Hmm… I didn’t know you were that good a dancer.” She said softly and felt a blush rising to her cheeks. Daniel smiled and ran his fingers through his black hair.

   “Ah, come on now, I just held onto you so I wouldn’t topple over.”, was his response as he pulled her closer to his body. She tilted her head to one side, weighing her options for a second before the booze decided. She grabbed his hands and he followed her obligingly.

   “Come on, let’s see if we can spot some shooting stars!” she cheered excited and they followed the one road that lead up the hill. On their way up they met Lauren heading back to the group, peering at Jenna with eyebrows that seemed to have a mind of their own. She stuck out her tongue but couldn’t hide her grin either.

They sat down on the road and watched the clear, starry sky above them. Daniel leaned back on his hands and she snuggled up against his side.

Then he huffed noticeably relieved and laughed rather nervously. She looked at him with a brow raised.

“Are you ok?” she asked him with a sting of doubt, ready to get dumped on the spot. Instead, he smiled to himself and enclosed her smaller hand in his own.

   “Do you realize how much heart that little stunt took me to pull off? I thought that if I drink any more to find my courage I’d end up lapsing into a coma… but I did it!” he raised his fist in triumph and grinned.

Jenna looked at him completely baffled. She’s had been thinking that she was the unsecure one in this regard, since Lauren had been telling her over and over how iffy and picky her brother could be.

   “Really? That doesn’t sound like you at all.” She said softly and nuzzled her head against his shoulder.    “Oh yes it does. I was afraid I’d die if you give me the brush-off! And now that you didn’t… I don’t really know what to do…” He replied and played around with her fingers but wiped his hand on his jeans because they were sweating.

Jenna watched him winding and was rather amused by it; then she smiled and kissed his cheek.

   “If it makes you feel any better: my heart is pounding right now. Over the last year… I’d started losing hope you’d be interested in me at all.” After confessing this she turned red and prayed he wouldn’t notice in the dark.

The first shooting star, brighter than all they had seen before, scooted across the sky and they both held their breath in awe. Further down the road the crowd was hollering and celebrating the spectacle that followed.

Jenna smiled and clung to Daniel’s arm, his three-day stubble was tickling her temple. He hadn’t forgotten her confession and went on with their conversation.

   “Oh I did notice you were paying me more attention than anyone else in the group… But I just couldn’t believe you were actually interested in someone like me! I thought you pegged me for a macho and just another random guy obsessed with sports… because… you’re just so smart and talented, not to mention cute. And what do I got? I’m playing football like every other dude out there and don’t really have any other talent worth naming next to that. So… I was just not sure what to make of that.”

Jenna sat up straight and looked him in the eyes, shining bright in the moonlight. He was actually serious about all of this, the way he returned her perplex stare sheepishly, waiting anxiously for a response.

With a glance to the sky she lowered her gaze and drew small circles in the dust.

   “And I thought… you pegged me for a total nerd and a tomboy… you know, since I draw stupid comics all day and prefer playing video games instead of doing my nails.” She chuckled, “I never thought I’d have a chance with a guy like you. You’re so popular… a great athlete and just so handsome! You’re nice and self-confident all the time; I just guessed you’d want a sporty, beautiful girl, one that’s socially active and acts according to her age. Not the weird, short wannabe artist with her outlandish style and her nose in books all the time!” she wanted to go on and on, almost falling back into her old insecure behavior, when all of a sudden a kiss shut her up.

Daniel cupped her face in his big hands, brushing gently over her cheek with his thumb and kissed her for what seemed and eternity. His lips were softer than she’d ever imagined and she’d never thought those big, rough hands – catching hard leather all day and tinkering with motorbikes at his dad’s workshop – could touch her ever so tenderly.

After she got over the first shock Jenna gave into the kiss and put one hand on his nape so she wouldn’t swoon. Slowly he drew back and looked at her with a serious face, his breath a little shallow.

   “Sometimes you just talk stupid shit, you know? Don’t tell me something like this ever again!” he scolded her and she looked abashed to one side before he caught her in his arms and pulled her closer. “I’m feeling genuinely offended if you think I’d want an average, boring girlfriend without a mind of her own when there’s such a talented, funny, passionate, gentle, extremely good dancing woman right in front of me! Honestly!” he ranted on and kissed her again, stroking her hair back and touching her neck.

   “Alright… I’m talking bullshit…” she murmured smiling.

They sat on the road for a long time, talking about everything and anything, counting shooting stars and kissing.

Eventually it was time to go home and everybody met up at the cars. Lauren walked over to Jenna and nudged her ever so often; her eyebrows doing there crazy dance again. Daniel was holding her hand and told Lauren to buzz of, whereupon she just grinned wider. Amy was nowhere to be seen, she’d hit the road a few hours ago, accompanying a friend of Daniel.

Jenna turned to Daniel and tilted her head back to look at him. She loved having to do that.

   “So… I guess we meet tomorrow then… I’ll text you.” They kissed and parted rather reluctantly. She followed Carly and Lauren, who was still fooling around with Daniel’s camcorder, to their car when she stopped and looked back, smiling at the group. She wanted to walk on when all of a sudden a blindingly bright light tore the night apart, dazzling everyone. With startled screams they covered their eyes and Jenna looked through her fingers only to see a shadow covering the moon, emitting the beam of light. A loud roar resounded from somewhere above them, then an enormous blast of air knocked some of them to the ground.

   “What the hell…!” she started, then she lost the ground beneath her feet and raised her arms to regain her balance.

Though she didn’t fall.

Jenna felt something catching her; an invisible force, pulling her up. Towards the light.

Her mind processed quickly, even though it couldn’t be possible! “An UFO…” she whispered before she started screaming and this broke the spell binding the others. They got up and ran towards her, panicking all over the place. Daniel caught himself first, he tried to grab her hand but he couldn’t reach her anymore and she was still ascending.

   “Jenna! Oh god, somebody hand me something to reach her! A branch, or- _something_!” he cried and someone gave him a cable spool. He unrolled it and threw the end up to her. She tried to catch it, but it wasn’t long enough and fell down again.

   “Please help me! Oh _god_!!” she screamed and turned around trying to get down there somehow; but the light pulled her up without mercy.

   “Hold on! I got this!” he tried to calm her, unrolling more cable and throwing it up. He was good at football, probably one of the best in his team. This time, she caught it and quickly wound it round her wrist. A painful jerk almost dislocated her arm but she hold tight onto the cable. Down on the ground Daniel bawled, trying desperately to pull against the unknown force. The others came to help him, grabbing the cable as well and even the man pulling it. They tore like men possessed and Jenna came to a halt mid-air. But the light was still yanking on her and it felt as if she was going to be torn apart. Suddenly she sank a bit and Daniel could pull some of the cable in!

   “We… We’re going… to make it! Keep it up, damnit!” he panted strained, the muscles of his arms bulging like ropes. Jenna felt like crying when she dropped a few more feet. They would make it! They would save her!

A high whirring sound emerged from somewhere above her, followed by a loud bang. The jerking stopped, the cable loosened around her wrist and she cried out in confusion and horror as she rose again. Her friends fell to the ground when the cable snapped in half and they could just watch how she was drawn out of their sight. They could just listen to her screaming, begging and crying.

Suddenly the light disappeared, the roar died down and the Ditch lay quiet as if nothing had happened here.

Daniel looked at the spot where Jenna had hovered a second ago. He stared down at his bleeding hands, torn open by the cable. His hands that had brushed over her skin and stroked through her hair only moments ago. He felt her kiss lingering on his lips, but still, she was gone.

She was gone and nobody could tell where to or if she was still alive.

She was just gone.

   “No… why? How…” Daniel punched the ground, his knuckles popped open and blood and tears darkened the concrete beneath him. Lauren burst out into husky screams; Carly whined and sank to the ground, shaking violently. Everybody else was just too shocked to react. They stood there open mouthed and frightened to death. Daniel stared at the torn cable. Though it wasn’t torn. It had been cut by something extremely hot, the charred end proved it.

   “Sh- shit! Guys! That was a fucking UFO that abducted her! _Fuck_! H- how the fuck is this even fucking _possible_?!” someone rasped. Daniel was still looking at the cable, the girls still crying. “And… and nobody is going to _believe_ us! Fuck, what the _HELL ARE WE SUPPOSED TO DO_?!” suddenly the guy piped down when Daniel jumped to his feet and ran over to Lauren, grabbing something she was clinging onto. The flashing red light had caught his attention and he vented a husky sound upon recognizing what it was.

   “How long have you been recording?” he whispered and Lauren looked at him in confusion, her eyes red and her cheeks dark with smeared make up. She answered him in Italian but she just told him that she wanted to go home and how sorry she was for everything. Daniel gently freed the camcorder from her clenched fingers and hugged her after taking a look at the display.

The taken video was twenty minutes long, and the camera was still recording.

  

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oops, Jenna doesn't know it yet, but this isn't going to be any fun at all~
> 
> But I know...  
> I hate myself T-T


	3. Alien

### Alien

 

Jenna screamed without taking in any air. Her throat was feeling raw already but she continued to cry for help, trying to reach for something to hold onto. But there was just this blinding void dragging her up and away. Suddenly she stopped in her ascend and fell instead, her panicked scream taken away by the impact. She gasped for air, shaking; the light had gone out and she was greeted with a pitch black surrounding. Panting she felt around only to find herself trapped inside a cramped tube made of metal. Her heart was palpitating, her breath became shallow; the darkness seemed to become thicker and suffocating.

She wasn’t claustrophobic in the least but this was just terrifying. Her fingertips jabbed painfully against the metal as she felt around again to make sure the walls weren’t closing in on her. There were no cracks or chinks in the metal. As she fumbled around Jenna noticed something odd about the metal of the wall. It felt too slick, more like glass. So she knocked against it, increasingly fiercer. She was hammering against the wall until the skin on her knuckles popped open, smudging the glass and her hand with warm blood. Desperately she threw herself against her prison, yelling in frustration and pain and kicked around when nothing happened. Eventually she gave up, sank against the wall and tried to catch her breath. The alcohol was making her sick and she leaned over, pressing her arms against her stomach. With hissing sounds she took the air in between her teeth and closed the eyes from the unsettling darkness.

 _Don’t throw up… just get it together!_ She urged herself. She had to focus!

If she panicked now she would miss every slight chance to escape.

Suddenly the tube moved and she was thrown to the ground by the unexpected motion. She collided with the hard ground again and uttered a startled scream. Her prison stopped for a second just to move in another direction. Jenna decided it was best to just lay down and wait for the ruckus to end.

She could hear whirring and hissing all around; apparently a machinery system was moving the tube. She tried to pick up any other sounds that would hint her where she’d ended up. And with whom else.

Then the ride stopped completely and a siren-like howl started shrilling. She sat up quickly, her head giving her a painful ache in return, and looked around fraught.

All of a sudden a slit opened at the top of the tube and light fell in, glaring her. The slit grew wider; like a curtain the black covering lowered and allowed the view on the interior of the UFO that had snatched her from her friends.

She squinted at the unfamiliar light before gasping for air in terror and pressing against the wall furthermost from the creature standing in front of the tube.

She had seen countless types of aliens by now, be it in movies or video games; but what she was looking at right now, and what clearly was looking back at her, didn’t resemble anything she’d come across so far. The creature had a greenish skin, sleek and without any impurities or scales. It was tall, way above a regular human height, with two long legs and two arms stuck in some sort of armor like the rest of its body. The head was slightly angular shaped and drawn backwards. The alien didn’t seem to have hair of any sort; only two long, black antennae that grew out of its skull, now craning high in a vigilant manner. The eyes were big, slightly bulging like a bug’s, and were of a vibrant crimson. There was no pupil, no iris or any white, just this deep dark pink reflecting the light in an eerie way.

Jenna could see herself in those eyes, frightened with wide eyes, huddled against a wall.

The alien was wearing some sort of suit made of purple plates and curious shapes, encasing its body like a perfect fitting armor. It raised a hand and placed it against the glass of her prison. Paralyzed by fear but not without fascination she noticed that it only had two digits and a thumb, covered in black gloves.

Suddenly the creature advanced, bared its teeth and hissed. A long, pink tongue curled behind razor-sharp shark-teeth. Jenna yelled scared and pressed against the glass again since she had leaned in a little. She hit the back of her head and grimaced in pain.

The alien barked a laughter rasping like sandpaper - but clearly a malicious laughter. Its voice sounded piercing and somewhat croaking.

The creature took a step back from the tube and crossed the arms in front of its chest looking surprisingly content. Jenna felt tears welling up. This was clearly none of the nice alien. Despite her paralyzing fear and confusion her thoughts were sharp and clear.

_I better don’t show any weakness…_

She slowly stepped towards the other end of the tube and eyed the alien warily. The container was actually hanging in the air so she was almost at eye level with the creature. From here she guessed its height to be something like seven and a half feet. She clenched her fists and looked it straight in the eyes.

   “I am not afraid of you! Got that?” she could hear the shaking in her voice and doubted the alien understood anything she said; but it grinned viciously at her words and narrowed the scary eyes to menacing slits. In spite of its lack of eyebrows she could clearly recognize it was frowning. With a chuckle it lightly knocked the tube and the resulting stagger threw her on the ground again.

This creature was freaking strong! She asked herself if it had been a sound idea to challenge it like that as it turned around and left the room.

 

For half an hour the alien wouldn’t show its face, giving her enough time to observe her surroundings and work on some plans to escape. She had ended up in a large hall running in a semicircle; the walls were made of some sort of pink metal (the red-ish colors were really curious for an alien ship in general) and separated in plates and structures. Cables and tubes were coiling under the ceiling, some hanging down to the floor or disappearing into the walls.

At the opposing end of the hall were more of the glass-tubes, like the one she was caught in, stacked next to each other, although empty. Hers was connected to a railway built inside the ceiling and could apparently be moved with a grappler. Like, towards the hatch in the floor where she’d come through. Jenna nodded as she went over the process in her mind. With aid of the tractor beam things were caught and scooped off the ground through the hatch and trapped inside one of the tubes. Like a bug in a jar.

At this thought she threw herself against her prison for the umpteenth time with a livid cry. The alien had left the room through a door which had opened and closed automatically as it approached. It was then that she noticed the round, hemispherical metal structure on its back, right between the shoulder blades, looking like a built-in backpack. She reminded herself to go for it when things were about to get nasty. That or the two antennae.

Other than that she didn’t know in the slightest what to anticipate; but she had been busy thinking about anything imaginable. Getting sliced open was only one of the possible outcomes.

Jenna was thinking about how to escape in case the tube was opened, and hopefully knocking her abductor off, when said abductor entered the room again. From what the human could tell, it looked lost in thoughts, if you could say that from such an alien opponent. She kept her eyes glued on it as the creature walked over to some sort of giant keyboard and pushed a button, bringing an even bigger holographic screen to life.

It set its eerie eyes on her and blinked two times before uttering something in a crooning, clicking language, reminding her even more of an insect beyond the eyes and the antennae. Instantly multiple cables and wires lowered from a port in the ceiling and connected with Jenna’s prison, in which she immediately cowered and pressed against the wall, watching the happening above her with uprising fear. A dangerous looking doohickey brought itself down from the ceiling, making her cringe in fright. It looked like the scary, horror-movie originated twin-brother of an electroencephalograph, with little, sharp spikes at the ends of suction cups. But the worst part was: the extensions were moving like they had a mind of their own.

A narrow opening was formed in the lid of the tube and let the device slip into the container, enclosing around the cables connecting it with the ceiling. The sucking cups grew stiff for a moment before racing down straight towards Jenna’s head. She screamed startled and lashed out at the creepy, coiling arms. She hit one of them hard enough to break the extension off. Surprisingly the device recoiled as if it really did have a mind. It waited just outside her reach and circled around, trying to choose a good spot to attack her again.

She clenched her teeth and growled angrily when the gadget risked another attempt to connect to her head.

   “Forget it! If you wanna make some stupid tests on me you’ll first have to sedate me, bitch!” she exclaimed, battering the contacts away again, grapping one and yanking on the thin metal. The device blurted out a howling sound which got higher and higher, resolving in a stunning electric shock, throwing her against the glass and numbing her for a moment. That was everything the device needed to plant itself on her skull and connect the contacts to her skin. Vise-like it clutched onto her head, the sucking cups buzzing with electricity as the spikes pierced her scalp.

Jenna regained control over her limbs and she jerked desperately on the cable, flouncing, only to be punished by another shock. Whimpering she lay on the tube’s floor, her fingers twitching in spasms. The device gave another sound and activated. She started to shake violently as the encephalograph scoured her mind for information. She felt how it sifted through her memories, her knowledge and her thoughts, even her subconsciousness.

Groaning she lifted her head in an attempt to sit up and opened her eyes to escape this whirl of images in her own head the device raised to the surface of her consciousness. The alien was standing right in front of her now, arms crossed, looking down at the human cringing in pain. She noticed a metal arm, coming from somewhere behind ist back, that had connected to the cable of the encephalograph.

Ist eyes were glued onto her; it seemed to enjoy the sight with a disgusting amount of amusement. And apparently it seemed to be the culprit raging through her mind. It dawned on her that it was looking for something. Information? Knowledge?

 _I need… to think… of… something… else!_ She thought frantically and recalled one of those stupid songs Carly had sent her recently. It had been a really obnoxious earworm she couldn’t get out of her head herself. She thought of it as hard as she could, giving herself a gruesome headache beside the pain from being mentally raped. Then she even started singing; hesitant at first and with a strained voice, then louder until she didn’t care if she was striking the right notes. She just wanted to drive the alien round the bend!

It seemed to work, the creature widened its eyes in irritation; then it grimaced angrily and hissed. A second spider-leg shot out from behind its back and pounded against the tube. Jenna jumped at the scare but managed to catch herself and just continued singing in the most obnoxious way imaginable. At some point she started jamming her foot against the glass to at least stay in rhythm.

Suddenly the feeling in her mind shifted and she was so startled that she froze immediately.

There was a voice in her head! She wouldn’t have known how to describe it. It sounded like a mixture of the voice she had in her head when reading a book or thinking to herself, then again it was something completely different. There was a hissing and rasping sound to it.

   “ _If you don’t seize this blatancy, I’m going to really hurt you, earth-creature!_ ”

At this phrase she knew what was going on. Jenna looked up and saw that the alien’s spider-leg connected to the device’s cable had started glowing. It looked at her infuriated and bared its teeth at her as if to confirm its words.

She was so shaken with this turn of events that she just stared at it open-mouthed before starting to think, to communicate.

   “What do you want from me? Why did you abduct me? Who are you?!” the questions in her head became more and more, and with them all her confusion, her fear and everything else swashed over to the alien’s mind. It widened its eyes at the wave of thoughts and flinched at the storm of feelings. The creature placed a hand at the side of its head and looked down with an unsteady gaze, like it was having trouble keeping its own thoughts aligned. Jenna saw this as a chance and took it.

“Please let me go! I’m _scared_ and I want to go back! My friends are worried sick, please, _I beg you_!” she was thinking (and talking) without interruption to the alien which had to hold onto the tube’s wall. Its knees gave way and it shook its head like someone trying to shake a bad dream.

   “ _Stop… stop that…_ ” she could hear it mutter in a little corner of her mind but her thoughts were in turmoil and turned inevitably to Daniel. She couldn’t keep herself from thinking of him, their confession, the kiss and what might have happened after this. That was the general problem with being in love (and having a panic attack): she couldn’t hold back her thoughts and feelings.

Not really a problem if you could keep quiet about it, but with a spectator in your mind it is a whole different kettle of fish.

The alien suddenly straightened itself and tilted its head to one side, listening curiously. Jenna knew she had made a mistake and wanted to stop thinking of Daniel to protect him. But human thoughts are hard to hold in once they’re in your head. So she thought of the song again instead.

Her abductor champed with rage and leaned forward, pressing its hands against the glass.

“ _What was that? Someone you care about? Are your fellow earth-worms your weakness?_ ” its consciousness grew stronger yet again in her mind trying to browse her memories more systematically. When she tried to hide something from it, the alien struck her with electric shocks; way stronger than those before. She already had stopped singing but it continued to torture her, dealing purposeful shocks to her neck and spine. Her defense crumbled and finally she burst out into tears, writhing on the floor in pain and burying her face in her arms.

   “Please! Oh god… please stop it… I can’t take it anymore!” she begged in her mind and with words and looked up to the alien, her cheeks tear-streaked. A victorious grin played around the thin-lipped mouth.

Jenna felt it invading her mind once again before it drew back and lingered at the corner of her mind. She was trembling uncontrollably and lifted her gaze. Her vision was blurred, her glasses had been knocked off by the shaking from the shocks, and she tasted blood in her mouth but she could hear the voice speaking to her clearly.

   “ _Are you surrendering? Do you acknowledge me as the representative member of the mightiest race in the universe? Only a word from you and I’ll let you out of the tube_.” The smile turned into a vicious grin. Jenna shook her head in panic. She didn’t want to - she wasn’t allowed to surrender! The alien crouched down until it was eye-to-eye with her. “ _You better surrender… or would you rather have me tearing your mind into little pieces until there’s just a husk left? Do you think I wouldn't do it?_ " it proposed to her, the magenta-colored eyes seemed to darken as it went on, " _Oh, I will plow through your miserable brain until I have all the information I need to send in the armada to wipe your pathetic little planet off the map!_ ” It spit out and straightened itself again, towering over her. The contacts on her skin sizzled with static again and a loud humming sounded. It would be a severe strike… if not the last. Slowly the charge travelled from the spider-leg towards the cable of the device. If it were to leap over to it there wouldn’t be any stepping back. And her chances to escape…

   “Wait!” she grated and the sparking charge came to a halt right before the connection to the cable.

“I… I surrender.” She began, gasping for air. The alien laughed in triumph, raspy and evil. “But!” she protested and gathered all her remaining strength to sit up and stare at it fiercely. “First: You will let me _out_ of here! Second: You _will_ answer _my_ questions as well! Only then, for all I care, I'm going to acknowledge you as the mightiest race in the universe.”

Its eyes squinted to angry slits and the alien hissed indignantly at her demands but paused for a moment to think of it. The antennae on its head twitched. Finally it bellowed something in its clicking language and the encephalograph detached from her skull. It was so painful she screamed all over again and felt blood trickling from her temples. She was all of a tremble and collapsed in a heap, crying and looking through the blur of tears. She noticed something red blinking in the alien’s hand, but without her glasses she couldn’t make out what it was exactly as the creature stepped forward and opened the tube. Before she could even move it grabbed hold of her hair and dragged her out of the container. Jenna fell to the floor at its feet and whined, trying to batter the hand away in a weak attempt as it pinned her down, wrapping something around her neck which immediately tightened around her throat and fit to it like a collar.

   “There. You’re free. I shall answer your questions about my sublime entity. But you should know this: I will continue to learn more about your measly species through you and use you as my test-subject!” its voice sounded somewhat darker than it had in her head as it now spoke to her directly. Jenna asked herself how the alien knew her language all of a sudden before it went dark before her eyes and she lost consciousness. 

 

                                                   

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let the games begin~ dun dun duuuun
> 
> so Jenna already lost the mind-game which is sad :B but oh well, there are plenty more to come!
> 
> Pic drawn by me yo, check out me dA [cough] 's good [cough] the-true-mek.deviantart.com


	4. Gruesome Awakening

###  **Gruesome awakening**

_48 hours since abduction – Space ship_

 

The first thing Jenna noticed, upon slowly opening her eyes, was a calmingly blue light surrounding her and casting patterns on the ceiling like the reflection of water; the next thing was the weight of a metal collar around her neck - and with that sensation, the rest of her memories came rushing back.

She sat up abruptly only to immediately lay down again with a groan. The soft table cushioned her throbbing skull gently; the headache was tearing her brain apart – that’s what it felt like at least. She whined whilst looking around cautiously.

The room she had woken up in was stretching into a slight arc, like the hangar. The blue light was flickering over the walls as well; it was ever so calming. Though she couldn’t shake the feeling of being threatened, considering where she had ended up to begin with.

She looked over to the other side and noticed a door. A little too rash she sat up again and held her head with a silent scream. But the door kept her focused. If this was a possibility to escape she had to take it!

Jenna flung her legs off the table and placed them on the cold metal floor. It was until now that she realized her shoes had gone missing. As had her socks…

Startled she gazed over her body and immediately drew her legs close to her chest when realization kicked in. She was butt naked!

A raspy laughter from a corner behind her sounded, almost making her jump off the table. She drew her knees even closer to her torso and wrapped her arms around them to hide the nudity as the alien pushed itself away from the wall it had been leaning against and started circling her with a chuckle.

   “Well, well… Nakedness apparently causes you to freeze in fear. Quite interesting, considering the fact I’d only have to remove all your species’ clothes to seize command over this planet.” It smirked, catching a strand of her hair between its three fingers and twirling it. “Moreover your kind seems to have a rather low tolerance for pain; those little shocks put you out of action for two solar cycles.” Almost pitiful but clearly sardonic it towered over her and pursed its near-to-none-existing lips.

Jenna stared with wide eyes at the floor and gasped for air, the words echoing in her head.

   “T- two days?!” she raised her gaze and flinched back. The sharp teeth were the last thing she wanted to be next to. As if it had read her mind the alien licked them casually with its long, striped tongue.

   “Yes, two days. I thought you would die under my hands until I realized what kind of liquid components you Earthworms need… and exude in exchange.” The creature added, wrinkling the skin between its eyes, which she recognized as a scrunching of the nose. With one hand it steadied itself on the table and bent over her in a menacing fashion.

  _If this isn’t a display of physical dominance I don’t know what is…_ Jenna thought with a shudder, avoiding its provoking stare. The alien hissed and grabbed her arm. Appalled she tried to pry herself free but it was way stronger than her, almost playfully stretching her arms apart and eying her without any sign of inhibition.

   “Stop that! Don’t…” she cried out and struggled desperately to turn away from its stare, when two metal spider-legs shot out from the structure on its back, pinning her down to the table while the alien grabbed hold of her chin and forcefully turned her face towards it.

   “Do you think that this wasn’t part of my reconnaissance mission? I must know you Earthworms from the inside as well as the outside if I want the armada of my leaders to be victorious!” it rambled on during its examination of her eyes, “The anatomy is a great part of this mission, Earthworm! You-“ – “Human!” she barked right in its face, making the alien flinch in surprise. It raised a brow (well, not literally a brow since it didn’t have any; more like a movement of the skin over its eye), tilting its head to one side.

   “What did you call me?!” it asked rather offended.

Jenna shook her head.

   “That’s what we call ourselves, you idiot! We are humans, not earthworms! Got it?” if she weren't so afraid of its reaction she’d have already spat in its face. So she just stared angrily at the green alien and braced herself against the spider legs once more.

The alien leaned back a bit and crossed its arms with another pout.

   “Don’t get it. Your planet is named Earth. And your kind is as pathetic as worms. Earthworms is way more fitting than hyoomuns.” It replied, pronouncing the word with an extra amount of contempt.

Jenna took a breath to respond to that, but there wasn’t really anything she could have said against such stupidity. In return, the alien grinned, pleased with its victory over the hyoomun. It took her hand and examined her fingers with visible skepticism. “Why so many digits? What’s the point of that? You only need three… ‘s quite primitive.”

She wanted to riposte but it got distracted by something else already. “Augh! And… and all that hair! On your skin and- just- Why??” it was clearly grossed out by her skin tags; She tried yet again to explain, but was - once more - interrupted as the alien closed in on her face, its own only an inch away. “And those strange eyes!”

   “Would you shut up for one fucking second?!” her sudden scream made the creature recoil in turn. Jenna was breathing heavily, her face burning red and she was fighting down tears of confusion and fright. “One… one at a time, okay?” she sighed hard and closed her eyes for a second. This was madness! 

Slightly confused - but way more alert than before - the alien took a step back from the erratic being and loosened its spider legs just so that she could sit upright while still restraining her to prevent an escape.

The woman slipped off the table and straightened herself, only to realize just how tall the alien really was. She hardly reached up to its middle so it had to be about 2,20 meter at least. It had its antennae perked up, not letting her out of sight for one split second.

   “Alright… what do you want to know first?” Jenna murmured resigning. The alien wanted to burst out immediately again, but then it stopped and placed a finger on its mouth, thoughtfully observing her tiny body. Eventually it pointed at the most alien feature of hers: Her long, brown hair.

   “This! Why do you have this kind of fur?” it took a step forward, drawn by its curiosity and started parting little strands with one finger. She flicked her hair over her shoulder, away from the grabby hand, avoiding the crimson eyes while trying to find a suitable explanation that would hopefully satisfy the pesky alien.

   “Well… it’s not really fur, we just call it hair, but a long time ago humans did have fur. You see, we originated from a line of mammals, apes. Apes still have their fur but humans didn’t need it at one point in the past so we got rid of it. The hair is a remnant of this fur, hereditary because it became an ideal of beauty.” She glanced at the alien, not sure if it understood. But it nodded and ran its fingers through her hair one more time before flicking against her nose, which hurt.

   “What’s this?”

 

 

It took almost two hours straight until the alien’s urge for knowledge seemed to have died down; at least for the moment.

Jenna’s throat felt raw and she craved something to drink. As it happened, the alien really brought her a bottle of water and watched her while she drank it. When she eagerly knocked back the cool, refreshing drink, a drop of water fell from her lips and landed on her chest.

She didn’t notice it, didn’t notice that the alien quietly observed how the water drop trickled down the arch of her breast and then reached the nipple.

Faster than she could even think to react it had reached out and touched her breast. With a start she shrieked, batting its hand away.

   “Hey! Don’t touch that!” she hissed, her voice wavering, and crossed one arm defensively over her chest, keeping it at distance with her free hand. The alien frowned in irritation.

   “You weren’t making such a fuss earlier… what’s so different about that?” it growled absently, clutching her wrists with the spider legs to open her arms. “What are you hiding? Some kind of weak-spot?”

Jenna struggled with all her might against the grasp of the claws without really achieving anything so she kicked the alien, hoping that enough resistance would keep it from further investigating her breasts.

   “It- it’s a very sensitive spot and I don’t want you to touch it, okay?!” she replied strained while it painfully pulled her arms apart.

She couldn’t help the blush rising to her cheeks. The alien watched the odd display and scratched its chin.

   “Hmm… a sensorial weak-spot? I’m thrilled to see what happens if I overstrain it.” It thought aloud and drew so close to her that it was practically standing between her legs, making her kicks now completely ineffective. Jenna froze in terror and tried desperately to look as indifferent as possible. Maybe it would get bored as long as she didn’t show any reaction to whatever was to follow.

When its cold digit brushed over her nipple she sharply took in air even so, but managed not to flinch.

However, the alien wasn’t impressed by that in the least, proceeding to pinch her breast; at first the skin around her pap and, without a warning, right in the middle. She gave a short scream before she was able to bite her tongue, hearing the alien snicker. “Oh, it is indeed a weak-spot, a strange one but a weak-spot none the less.” It commented before noticing how the dark feature contracted and hardened in response to the harsh treatment. It hissed in surprise and eagerly continued pinching it enthralled by the funny reaction.

Fascinated he ran his free hand over the other bulging breast. The soft skin felt warm and admittedly pleasant; not as flawless as his own, but softer and lively. Under his palm he could feel something beating, like a little machine racing to keep its host alive. He had come across some species with an organ like this. He searched in the language of his subject and found one word. Heart.

But it was beating so fast! What peculiar beings. So it seemed the red spots on the human’s skin were actually blood gathering in particular places upon irritation.

Fascinating.

  Jenna focused on her breath and tried to blank out the torments which seemed to work. The alien noticed that its subject wasn’t reacting the way it desired, whereupon it frowned, dealing the nipple one last flick before letting up on it.

   “You done?” she asked as uninterested as she could manage, adding a little annoyance to it and even cocked a brow. The crimson eyes gleamed with rage.

   “You’re hiding something, human! I don’t buy your sudden cool. Something was really unpleasant to you about this… but not in a way one would react to pain.” It snarled and she could see how its wits set to work behind the high forehead. The panic returned and clawed at her heart again; The alien was definitely up to something!

As soon as the spider legs shifted, aiming for her shoulders, she tried to turn around and jump off the table; it had expected as much, caught her around her waist and threw her back on the operating table, pinning her down with the spider legs to tower over her.

Now Jenna couldn’t keep her screams inside as the mouth with razor-sharp teeth closed in on her breast and tucked up her knees trying to kick it; but the alien simply grabbed her legs and pressed them down. Something cold, something wet ran over her nipple and coiled itself around it. It felt so strange that she whimpered in disgust and fought all the harder against the restraints.

The alien was going to abuse her!

   “Stop it! You disgusting bastard, let go!! _Stop_!” her voice went shrill when it bit her and now tears started running down her cheeks. She didn’t notice yet that it had indeed let up on her already. “I hope that the germs I have down there kill you if you dare to stick something _inside_ me!” she screamed in his face and looked into a pair of wide open eyes.

Her chest was heaving from the frantic intakes which had turned into choking sobs. They stared at each other.

Slowly the metal arms released her and Jenna took the chance to slip off the table and press against a wall, her arms wrapped around her body, shielding it. “Back off you disgusting piece of shit!” she hissed, her teary eyes narrowed to hateful slits.

The alien had frozen completely and could just watch her. Then it seemed to remember that it represented the mightiest race in the universe, straightened its broad shoulders and scowled before turning on its heel and leaving the room, locking the door.

She waited until the door had closed with a clicking sound; only then she allowed herself to sink to the ground and give way to an uncontrollable sobbing.

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't go to InvaderCon... I am sad :(


	5. A new Perception

### A new perception

 

_Space ship – Conning Bridge_

 

 “Computer, open a comlink, contact the _Massive_!” the alien shouted upon entering the bridge of his ship. The strange display the earthling had shown during the examination had given him an idea. But it was a risky plan and he doubted his leaders would even give him the go-ahead for it. After all it meant a rather huge reprogramming of his Pak, let alone other obvious dangers.

  Only seconds later the faces of his leaders, the Almighty Tallest, appeared on screen. He saluted exactly and eased as the left of them, Tallest Red, put him off.

   “Invader Set, I hope you can please us with new information concerning your mission.” The Tallest on the right, almighty Tallest Purple, greeted him while nibbling on a donut. Set straightened himself some more.

   “Yes, my Tallest: I successfully managed to capture one of the planet’s inhabitants and already started examining and questioning her. The species’ physical strength is ridiculously weak but their danger lies in their vast numbers. My scans revealed a total of over 7 billion individuals and this number is increasing steadily. Furthermore the planet seems to inhabit quite an amount of dangerous species next to the predominant one, which calls itself ‘humans’. The hostile environment makes it hard to closely observe them on the planet’s surface, but I do need to gather far more information about the earthlings to define the actual value of this planet for our Operation Impending Doom 2. To do so, I will need to have full control over said test-subject, physically and mentally…” now he hesitated a little, admitting failure was never easy under the sharp eyes of his leaders, “Unfortunately, the human proved to be utterly resistive against the brain control and torture fails to create the desired obedience; in fact she only counteracts with more violence and resistance.” That was a tiny lie since he had not exactly tortured the human, but they didn’t have to know that. “This is why I humbly request my Pak’s activation to receive Code 900, my almighty Tallest, to subjugate her completely.”

He bowed deeply and prayed for a miracle, while his leaders remained silent.

The silence grew unbearable.

   “You… would willingly risk your physical well-being to gather information for your mission, which in return _could_ benefit the Operation?” Tallest Red summarized the situation and shot a glance to Purple, who was looking at the Invader before them with wide eyes.  

    “Yes my Tallest, I would put the good of the Empire before my own so that it can prosper.” Set replied fervently and saluted once more. Tallest Red shrugged.

    “Well, I like it; you get the authorization to activate your Pak for receiving Code 900. I just hope the information you get through it pay off for you, whatever the cost.”

    “Thank you, my almighty Tallest! Invader Set signing off!” The Tallest waved lazily and the screen went black.

A long wire descended from the ceiling and connected itself with the Pak on Set’s back. He switched the screen and activated the now green activation sequence for Code 900. Only a few elite warriors and even less Invaders were allowed to use this Code; it was both an honor and a dangerous risk. It proved how much trust and respect his leaders were giving him, then again he wasn’t sure if this whole ordeal wouldn’t kill him in the end… but for his almighty Tallest he would gladly take this risk!

 

* * *

 

 When Set returned to the human he felt oddly inattentive like he had never before in his entire life. It bothered and frightened him at the same time.

She was lying curled up underneath the examination table with her arms still wrapped around her body when he entered; he had to focus.

Some things had become clear to him after downloading the Code into his Pak and yet all of its content seemed completely strange and new. Set was now aware of how to break the human’s will and maybe even how to win her over. Her read thoughts about the other Earthworm had proven rather revealing as well, if not extremely interesting to his reprogrammed mind, and he knew that he had to act with care, had to lull her into a false sense of security and avoid anything that might scare her in the beginning. But just to be extra safe he had analyzed her blood beforehand; her organism was even less different than he had expected.

    “What do you want?” she asked quietly and the small frame shivered slightly. Set was surprised she had managed to notice him before he actually approached her.

He wasn’t used to the new Code at all and there hadn’t really been much time to test it out, so he found himself overrun by a sheer mass of thoughts and a terrible curiosity which had to be ignored for the time being.

Cautiously he stepped around the table and sank to one knee so that his height wouldn’t frighten her again. Set handed the human an old uniform of his, a pink piece of clothing with black stripes and long sleeves he had grown out of ten years ago. The human looked up and blinked in confusion.

“What is that?” she asked; her voice sounded overstrained and coarse as if she had been screaming for a while.

   “It’s something to wear. I had to dispose of your earth-clothes; Standard hygiene regulations. But otherwise you’re going to get sick and I’d hate to catch any of your earth germs.” He answered and tried not to stare too long into these strange green eyes.

She had to have noted something about his ruffled state of mind because she suddenly raised her body from the ground and shot him a suspicious glare.

_By Irk, get it together already!_

“But if you prefer to walk around naked… I’m sure the surveillance cameras would be pleased.” He added casually and looked around uninterested. The human flinched and snatched the proffered uniform to quickly shuffle it on. Two small holes remained on her back where the Pak normally used to connect to the body. She pulled her long hair out of the collar and brushed it over her shoulders. Set watched her the whole time until she angrily yanked on the metal band around her neck.

She stopped again to eye him with an inquiring look.

   “You… act weirdly.” She stated and took a second to case her looks. The uniform was a little tight but at least matched in length so that it looked like a knee-long dress.

Set stared at her. She was without doubt alien, but not exactly hideous; especially because her skin had felt so soft and nice. Without him noticing his fingers started twitching and the thin antennae quivered.

_Win her trust, ask for her name… if there are actual designations with this many Earthworms on the planet._

“What’s… err… do you have a… name?” he hemmed and hawed and felt the sudden urge to pull on his antennae.

 _Pathetic_!

The human stared at him downright aghast. The weird hair-bars over her eyes drew closer together, creating a deep wrinkle; astonishingly enough he recognized this expression as a scowl even though he didn’t have these arches of hair himself. Despite her visible distrust she gave him an answer:

   “I’m Jenna…”

   “Jen-na…” Set repeated. Not that complicated a name to be fair.

Her gaze was a silent question, and it appeared to grow a little impatient.

   “Huh?” he uttered confused.

The Jenna-human clucked her tongue, another gesture he knew well.

   “And you are?” she drew out the last word almost mockingly and it angered him; he jumped to his feet and straightened himself to his full height, blazing with pride.

   “To you, Earthworm, I am the great Invader Set! Elite-Invader of the Irken Empire and harbinger of Operation Impending Doom 2 under the almighty Tallest, leader of the sublime Irken race! And since you acknowledged my superiority and submitted to my might you are obliged to show me the respect due to my superior existence!” swollen with pride and arms akimbo he raised his head awaiting her to beg pardon on her bended knees for having insulted such a great Invader.

She chortled.

Set opened one eye and looked at her perplexed. His antennae shuddered with indignation. Was she for real?

The human didn’t seem to be impressed in the slightest and continued picking at the uniform while standing up and settling comfortably on the examination table.

   “So, you’re an Irken you say.” She mused and crossed her legs, “What do you want with my planet? Conquer and enslave the intelligent species as slaves I imagine.” Her strange eyes fixed their gaze on him and glinted with an alarming amount of intelligence. Gradually Set began to ask himself if he hadn’t captured a scientist or simply a smartass with her.

Jenna raised a hand to poke her nose with her index but stopped with a start. Was she looking for these odd goggles that made you all sick when looking through the glass?

“Where… where are my glasses?” her voice almost cracked, “Why can I see without them all of a sudden!?” she rubbed her eyes in disbelief and shot him a shocked glance. Set stood tall again and grinned.

   “Oh, I just fixed your eyes while you were unconscious; they were all faulty from this sickening glass.” He placed one hand under her chin and raised it so she had to look him in the eyes. “Just a simple token of my generosity.” Contented he waited for eulogies and prostrating herself to his feet but the human just stared at him. Suddenly tears welled up in her eyes and she frowned.

Set was confused; had he done something wrong? “I…” he began and stopped as she wiped the tears away looking up to him, a small smile on her lips.

   “It’s just… everybody said all the time that my eyes couldn’t ever be repaired by laser treatment or anything else… and you just fixed them like that!” she seemed to be completely astonished and Set made a lazy move with his hand.

   “Tsk, primitive technology like your species uses was outdated hundreds of years ago on my planet. So - that was no big deal for someone like me.”

   “That reminds me; why can you speak my language?” she wanted to know and changed the position of her legs. Set eyed her little feet – what tiny toes, and so many – with fascination.

   “My Pak decodes your pattern of speech based on other languages and data I gathered through your satellite’s communication, translating it into a program that I can use to speak with you. But I haven’t come across such a guttural language since the discovery of planet Blorch… and that one had rat-people as the predominant species.” He ranted and raised his hands to the ceiling showing his utter disgust. Jenna gave a high, clear laugh. Set’s antennae vibrated slightly from this silvery sound. A most pleasant noise.

For a moment they both went silent. Eventually Jenna turned her head and peered at a wall.

   “Are we actually still on earth?” she asked in a hushed tone. Set scrunched up the area between his eyes.

   “Of course _not,_ stupid human! I’ve navigated my ship immediately out of your planet’s orbit once I’ve had caught you. Since your aerospace is so underdeveloped like the rat-people on Blorch and your satellites and radars can be fooled as easily we’re currently floating next to your stinking planet.” He sneered and folded his arms in front of his chest.

   “Can I see it? The earth I mean.” She murmured and bit down on her lip. Set blinked with surprise; then he snorted and waved at her to follow him.

They left the room and followed the arching hallway which ended in a big command bridge, completely glassed-in – or at least built from a transparent material. Along the curved front ran a gangway; the round middle piece formed an elevated podium crowned by a giant console and a tall, crimson chair.

In the black void ahead of them, almost ghost-like, the blue planet floated like an island in a vast sea of nothing. Dignified and deeply moved Jenna slowly wandered along the glassed wall, touching the material while longing for home.

Set was watching her from his seat, his fingertips drumming on the console in thoughts.

Jenna sighed yearningly. Somewhere down there, her friends and family would be worried sick for her. Two whole days! It was most likely that nobody would believe her friends if they told them she got abducted by an UFO. Maybe they were assuming that she had to be already dead by now.

   “Do you want to get back?”

She was scared witless from the voice hissing right next to her ear. Jenna wheeled around and bumped against the handrail behind her. The Irk had snuck up on and towered over her. His crimson eyes gleamed in the dim light of the bridge. Despite the lack of pupils she noticed that his gaze was wandering over her.

   “Y- yes… I do.” She replied breathless and tried to calm her pounding heart. Set traced the features of her face with one finger, portraying them and drawing one sharp tip over her throat, lingering at the rim of the metal collar, its purpose still unknown to her.

   “You could see them again… your Earth… and your Earthworm-friends. I can let you go, you know?” His fingers closed around the collar to pull her roughly against him. Jenna braced her hands against the armored chest-plate but he was far too strong for her to actually shove him away. Her heartbeat was racing from fear now. “But that depends on how useful you’ll prove to me.” He sibilated into her ear, a long tongue tickled its edge.

Jenna wanted to turn her head away from him, but his free hand grabbed her chin and held her in place with an iron grip. “You are going to help me develop something that subjects the humans to my will so that I may herd them up and present them as loyal slaves to my leaders!” the wet tongue snaked its way down her jaw line; she felt the cool breath on her skin. She wanted to start screaming but all of a sudden his mouth was closing her lips and she froze in terror.

The alien’s kiss was so horribly… _alien_ that she went completely rigid, unable to even react against it. Sharp teeth were tearing delicate lips open as he parted them to tangle his tongue with hers.

And it did indeed: A few times the long tongue coiled itself around Jenna’s and contracted like a snake. Reflexively – or because she finally managed to shake the rigor – she bit him.

The alien snarled furiously and quickly recoiled however still holding her down. The Irk furrowed his brows and grazed his tongue. He stared at the blood on his finger – crimson like his eyes – with a bewildered gaze. Menacingly he drew himself up to his full height, pressing her against the handrail.

   “You’re stubborn… but you will learn to give in. Sooner or later you won’t be able to resist me, human!” he grabbed her hair and pulled her head back to expose her neck; bending over her he ran his teeth over the thin, blood-smeared skin of her lips once more before letting up on her and stalking back to the console. “Computer, bring the human back to the examination room.” He barked and immediately a long cable scooted from the ceiling to wrap itself around Jenna’s waist.

   “I’d rather die than help you! I will never surrender! Never, you hear me!?” she cried with her voice trembling from hate; the cable ran along another system of rails from the command bridge back to the blue room where it just dropped her on the ground and hiding inside the ceiling again.

Jenna sprang to her feet and banged wildly against the door which had closed behind her.

“I’d rather die…” she whispered and propped her forehead against the door’s cold metal.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter will have a trigger warning so I'll update the archive warnings once it's out!


	6. Resistance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning! This chapter has a non-con scene in it!!!

### Resistance - Part 1

 

_Space ship – Two hours later - Examination Room_

 

Jenna awoke with an abrupt start from her doze when the door opened and Set entered soft-footed. But she didn’t let it show and pretended to be still asleep; it dawned on her that he wanted to sneak up on her. Lying on top of the table had been uncomfortable, it was too open, too vulnerable a position to grant a restful sleep. So she had decided to lie down curled up next to the door.

Now she peered from a half-opened lid and closely watched the Irken’s boots as he slowly came closer. Something, reminding her of a pair of shackles, pended next to his leg and she knew she had to react swiftly while still having the element of surprise.

It was futile but she’d sworn to take every chance that would present itself. This was definitely a chance.

When he perched down, reaching for her, her hand shot forward grabbing one of the antennae. His surprised sound turned into a pained howl as she clinched her grip and yanked on the thin appendage. Wheezing the alien fell to the ground with his fingers writhed into claws from the pain and dropping the shackles!

Jenna jumped on her feet dashing for the open door. Just as the Irk tried to reach for her she kicked his side and bolted out of the room. Her bare feet padded on the metal flooring as she quickly sprinted towards the bridge and opened the door with a punch on the control panel next to it.

Once inside she scanned the room for something solid. A curious block of metal right next to the seat caught her eye and she almost toppled over trying to hoist the heavy object. Eventually she made it, carried it to the door and hammered it with all her might against the door’s control panel. The door opened and closed with a seizure. With a furious cry she lifted her improvised tool over her head and dealt the panel an even fiercer blow, breaking down the whole control panel and revealing the wiring beneath it. Cables dropped out of the opening emitting sparks but she pulled them out without hesitation and connected the bare contacts together like you would do with a car: The door gave a metallic crunch and closed completely. With her heart throbbing painfully she took a step back from the door just as a loud bang from the other side let it shook in its frame.

   “Cursed Earthworm! I’ll tear you to pieces!” the alien blared and threw himself against the barrier. Jenna snarled back and turned towards the command console in front of the seat. Doubtfully she stared at the strange symbols and buttons.

Suddenly it all appeared to be a completely futile endeavor. With a desperate yell she reached for something that might have been the control stick of a plane and pulled it.

Nothing happened.

   “Oh come on!” she bawled at the gizmo and gave it another frantic pull. Then she noticed a little light that had started blinking. Since she didn’t have anything else to lose at this point, she pushed the button below it. The space ship suddenly lit up and the control stick in her hand started trembling slightly. From the other side of the door she could hear the alien shout in surprise and Set immediately doubled his effort to break through, resolving in the shrieking sound of metal against metal ringing in her ears as she pushed the stick forward again. The space ship swerved lazily forward, tilted a bit and gained speed. Jenna spat out a relieved laughter – which sounded more hysteric than relieved – and steered the ship towards the blue planet.

From the corner of her eye she noticed something flying at her and dodged instinctively to the side. The object shot past her and bounced against the glass wall where it stayed. Bewildered she stared at the figure. A glowing red headlight fixed on her; a metal arm transformed into a buzzing lash which already darted in her direction. Jenna jinked to the left, dodging the metal whip by an inch only because she fell from the seat.

The little robot whirred and clicked agitatedly and pounced from the wall, landing on the console above her. She rolled over the ground to evade the whip when suddenly the floor ended and she dropped into the gap between bridge and gangway. Cables, wires and tubes broke her fall but the robot was in front of her again, whipping at her. To top it all the sealed door burst open with an ear-ringing sound and Set stomped on the bridge.

   “SIR, keep the human filth at bay! She mustn’t escape. Computer, stop the ship and return to former position!” he barked imperiously. Jenna crawled deeper into the wiring and felt how the ship stopped moving before slowly flying backwards. She wanted to scream out of frustration but the robot seemed to have lost track of her and she didn’t want to catch its attention either.

   “Master, the human is hiding under the bridge; a seizure is not possible without damaging the bridge’s machinery, Sir!” the robot reported saluting as Set’s shadow fell on the gangway.

   “Clever girl… but sadly that won’t do her any good! Computer: scan the bridge and get the human out of her hidey-hole!”

The ship hummed and the bridge was filled with an eerie green light. Jenna bit her lip and buried her face in her arms. Every bit of hope she had was just gone now. A few seconds later some of the cables wrapped around her body and dragged her out of the cramped space beneath the bridge. Faintly she fought them although knowing it was useless. The cables turned her around so that she had to look the Irken in the face. His triumphing, diabolic grin made her tremble. “You didn’t keep your word. You said you’d acknowledge my superiority. Such disobedience has to be punished.” He raised his eyes and the crimson turned a darker shade. “Computer: Show me subject 543 and -44 on the main screen.” He turned to her again drawing his teeth closer to her ear. “I’m curious to see your face…” he chirped with relish and caught her earlobe between his teeth.

A part of the glassed front turned into a giant monitor displaying two humans standing in a garden embracing each other. Jenna screamed in terror.

   “Mom! Dad!” now she started struggling against the cables around her body and stared at him. “What are you up to?! Leave them alone!”

The alien grinned widely, baring its teeth in the process.

   “Oh, I think I won’t leave them alone at all… you see: your behavior calls for vigorous measures. I’m going to use them as a warning; if you decide to disobey me again, I’ll kill another human you care about and so on.” He rubbed his chin in thought. “Hmm, maybe I shall kill your little Wormfriend next.” He guffawed a raspy laughter and didn’t notice how she managed to pry one arm free from the cables to reach for him. She caught hold of his shoulder and pulled the Irk towards herself until her lips painfully slammed against his mouth. Set flinched alarmed and crossed his eyes to peer hard at the human kissing him in an act of pure desperation. Then his look grew sinister and he waved his hand.

The cables around her loosened their grip and disappeared so that he could catch Jenna in his arms to draw her closer. He ran his fingers through her hair and laid a hand on the human’s soft, warm neck. She opened her mouth a little and allowed his long, coiling tongue to enter. This time around she didn’t fight back nor bite him, just let him do as he pleased. Set’s throat emitted a soft chirring sound and soon after that he slowly parted from her.

Jenna lifted her gaze and looked in his eyes; tears already welling up in her own and impended to overflow but she bravely held them back as she spoke:

   “I do everything you want; but please - _please_ leave my family alone! Leave my friends alone… this is between you and me, okay?!” she pleaded and started shivering from the touch of his hand on her back. His contented looks turned challenging.

   “ _Everything_ , hm?” he echoed, slipping his hand under the uniform she was wearing, rucking up the cloth.

Jenna grimaced and tensed up before she started shaking violently. Her eyes were cast to the floor and her hands clenched into fists until her knuckles protruded the skin white as she gave the faintest nod and breathed a croaky “Yes.”.

Set looked down on her for a moment, struggling with himself. The next she knew she was thrown down on the ground and he was bending over her. Jenna cried out in shock raising her hands to fend him off but they were instantly caught by two metal arms and pressed to the floor beside her head. With his hands free he shoved the uniform up and forced a hard kiss on her lips.

On the brink of her consciousness, already overpowered by panic and disgust, she realized rather confused that he didn’t seem to know what to do exactly but acted rash and ravenous as if something had previously repressed his desires until now.

The Irk pinched her nipples, squeezed her breasts and rubbed the tips between his fingers all the while hissing and breathing hard before he lowered his head to take one in his mouth.

The sensation of his tongue coiling around her breast made Jenna wail.

   “Your body is so much weaker than your spirit…” he growled snidely as he watched how the sensitive feature contracted under the harsh treatment, despite her repulsion, and let his hands search her body for more sensitive areas for him to tease. He discovered how delicate her ear was and how tender the skin of her neck which he started to treat roughly with teeth and tongue right away.

In her panicking mind she begged for him to just get it over with and not having the nerves to explore her body even further…

The alien must’ve been noticing something about her because he stopped for a second and leaned away to observe her frame. His antennae perked up when he seemed to have found what he had been looking for and he slid down to inspect it.

Through the Code in his Pak, and mind, he was aware of what he was looking at. Humans and Irken weren’t all that different in anatomy after all. But there was this funny knob he couldn’t really make anything out of. With a short glance up to her he started to grin upon noticing her eyes widening in panic giving him the confirmation he needed. This particular feature of her body had to be more sensitive than all of the previous combined. Without looking away he grazed the knob with one fingertip. Jenna gasped at the light touch and a shiver ran through her legs. Her hands clenched as Set added more pressure and even started squeezing it. Her breath had become a series of shallow intakes.

The moment his tongue touched the knob she screamed out of terror and she writhed on the floor to get away from the alien. Her mind was blank; the only thing present was the panic and the fear as she begged him to stop. Set was overthrown by his arousal which grew even stronger by the minute: he had to – he _needed_ so badly to do _something_ to ease this almost painful burning inside him! With a growl he came back up to bite her breast and lick the soft red skin. When he lowered his head one of his antennae touched her lips and her labored breath struck the thin stalk.

A violent tremble shook the Irk and he quickly recoiled, covering the antenna with his hand looking rather stunned.

Confused she stared at him before trying to crawl away once more and the spider legs had to hold her down again. Slowly, cautiously he lowered his head again touching her lip with the antenna. She had no idea what that was supposed to mean but when the chitin like appendage pressed more firmly against her mouth she hesitantly enclosed it with her lips.

Under another intense shudder he lifted his gaze to give her a warning glare.

   “If you bite me… I’ll bite back!” he snarled, caressing her unexpectedly soft. Jenna couldn’t hold back a surprised sigh and did what he commanded, stroking the antenna up and down with her tongue. Set panted as he was overrun by the most pleasant feelings imaginable he had never experienced before. He completely forgot about his own hand still lingering between her thighs and closed his eyes, afraid to pass out, steadying himself with his spider legs.

Jenna licked the black antenna, let it slip through her lips and gently breathed on the wet stalk.

Maybe it would be up faster if she just played along even though the mere thought on _not_ fighting this made her squirm in self-loathing.

Suddenly a loud noise caught her attention and she opened her eyes just to witness how the armor he’d been wearing disappeared into the structure on his back – he called it Pak, she remembered out of the blue. Jenna could just watch timidly as Set straightened his back to look down on her. Her eyes widened even more but she couldn’t stop them from slowly traveling down his body evoking a morbid curiosity to look closer she couldn’t keep under.

His chest was broader than the armor had let on at first; he didn’t have any features like nipples, a bellybutton or hair and she couldn’t really find any flaw on the smooth, green skin. As she dared to look further down she swallowed hard and squinched her eyes shut.

He kneeled in front of her, his breath shallow and his mind blank, and clasped her hips. One last time she tried to fight back and kick him but the Irk barely noticed her at all wherefore she resigned and tried to think of something different to block it all out.

But her mind was somehow reminded of all the gross alien-movies that would be on TV at night and her brain came up with all sorts of horrible scenario: What if she somehow got pregnant from this? Or get acidic burns from some sorts of body fluids or even suffer from an anaphylactic shock? She’d read enough to know that such a reaction was able to kill her.

Set touched her again and, as a matter of fact, her panic settled a little.

   His thoughts were incoherent; he felt powerful and yet vulnerable as he positioned himself and reluctantly pushed into her. The human whimpered in pain but didn’t try to fend him off so he started thrusting, slowly at first but when the Code confirmed this action to grant relief he lost himself in his thrusts. It just felt so unbelievably good and his instincts took control so that he felt the body beneath him with a new form of senses; the heat, his own labored breath and this soft skin brushing against his. Every time he drew back to thrust into her again a new wave of lust and desire overcame him. He bent over her again, caressing the side of her neck and pressed against her warm body, even retracting the spider legs.

Jenna had her hands planted against his chest but there was no actual strain behind it and she panted now instead of whining. He felt the burning inside his guts rise to a really painful blaze: something, anything, had to happen right now or he feared to explode. When he pounded into her again a sudden, husky sound erupted from her and the heat unloaded with a single, hoarse moan as he came.

For a second everything went dark and all energy seemed to leave his body before a powerful shock from his Pak jolted through him and brought him back. Jenna was lying underneath him, her frame trembling and she was gasping for air trying to catch her breath. Set buried his face at the crook of her neck, struggling for air as well, and embraced the tiny being.

His thoughts were blank for a moment; he just felt good - exhausted, yes - but content and undeniably satisfied. Why had he been mad at her in the first place? He couldn’t recall. His rage and the malevolence from before were completely gone; instead he cradled the human and lost his thoughts in the heat of her body again, the racing beat of her heart, and felt a strange desire for this warmth growing inside him. He almost regretted treating her so brutally just then. Almost.

She moved a bit away from him to free herself from his genitals which slowly retreated into his body cavity. Then she allowed him to cradle her again and exhaled harshly, more like a dry sobbing.

Set let his fingers run gently over her back in thought and paused at the spot between her shoulder-blades where he had the heavy Pak connected to his neural system.

   “What a weird little creature you are. You don’t seem to know any form of honor only the sole urge to survive…” he pondered muttering and was surprised by his own train of thoughts. Jenna shot a hateful glare up to him. His gaze was thoughtful though, not sneering as she had presumed, astonished and fascinated, why she dropped the insults that had been lying on the tip of her tongue.    

“And yet you’re selfless and sacrifice yourself for the sake of others who don’t even know what you’re going through in order to save them.” He wavered for a second before dipping his head and kissing her softly. Jenna tensed at first but then she gave it up, after all resistance seemed pointless after what had just taken place. Sets hand ran down her body pulling down the uniform. At the same time his armor closed around him again enclosing his tall frame. He rose to his feet in a swift motion pulling her up as well.

“SIR will show you where you can clean yourself. Come back here once you’re done.” He commanded calmly while the robot pushed her towards the hallway. Jenna complied silently following it but then decided to take a look over her shoulder. The Irk was watching the planet with his arms loosely crossed behind his back. He seemed absolutely composed.

The robot gave her another shove and they left the bridge; the massive door was completely bent and torn open. On the edges she could see unmistakable traces of the spider legs and Jenna shuddered from the sheer force this being was able to generate out of rage.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [phew] I'm glad that's over o.O - Pic is, again, drawn by me; in fact it was the first ever picture I've drawn for this story.


	7. Resistance - Pt. 2

### Resistance - Part 2

 

They passed the examination room she had woken up in, the hangar, and followed the round hallway to the other side of the ship. The first door past the hangar opened and the robot positioned itself next to it, probably to stand guard. She eyed the little thing. The previously glowing red lens in the middle of its head was now blue which made it appear a little less murderous. It reached up to her hip and right now the robot pointed impatiently towards the open door.

Jenna sighed and entered the completely white room.

Which was also completely empty.

   “H- how am I supposed to clean myself in here?” she asked but the door already closed behind her. Helplessly she looked around the room once more. Suddenly she noticed a glowing panel on the floor and approached it cautiously. With her foot she touched the blue glowing square and jumped back as a shallow basin came floating down from the ceiling to stop about a foot above the ground. Wary she made a step towards it and tentatively put out her hand. After a second a gelatinous liquid – which clearly wasn’t water - dripped sluggishly from the ceiling and landed on her palm so she quickly withdrew her hand. But when it neither burned nor itched she doffed the uniform and slid carefully into the basin. The liquid began to waft in blobs between ceiling and bowl like those inside a lava lamp but without any other substance to contain it. It was just floating through the air!

Fascinated she poked one of the big drops causing it to wobble and change its shape.

   “You’re supposed to cleanse yourself with it not play around!” the Irk snarled from somewhere above her. Jenna flinched at the sound remembering the surveillance cameras he had mentioned. Angrily she snatched a handful of the gel and started rubbing it over her arm. It didn’t foam like soap would’ve done and she asked herself how this was going to clean anything but then she witnessed that little, scraped pieces of skin got caught in the liquid and floated towards the ceiling in it. She cleaned herself from head to toe with the strange matter, even her hair, until she figured it was enough to be called clean.

Though she couldn’t possibly get rid of the feeling of being stained - not even closely.

A strong blast of air dried her in a second and she coughed as it was also taking her breath away. Jenna climbed out of the basin to put the uniform on with visible reluctance. She actually wanted to refuse wearing this thing again but it had to do since she didn’t have anything else to wear.

The door to the hallway opened and the robot followed her like a watchdog as she made her way to the bridge again. At the burst open door little metal arms and wrenches were eagerly working on repairing it as if they had a mind of their own.

Set stood in front of the console quickly typing something on it. Before him the giant screen was lit up again showing blueprints of robots as well as drones and probes, as far as she could tell, in a sickening speed. SIR transformed back to being the metal block Jenna had used to bash the door in and the Irk turned around to eye her.

   “Good, now you smell a lot better.” He grinned before pouting thoughtfully. “But… something’s missing; I can’t let you walk around like this with only the exploding collar detonating should you attempt to escape… that doesn’t show anybody whom you belong to.” He mused and Jenna reached for her neck with a gulp as the blinking metal collar seemed to contract around it.

On his first comment she had wanted to come back with a curse but she feared the situation was about to get out of hand again with the speed of light: Set closed up on her to grab her chin surprisingly gentle. “No, in case my Tallest get here eventually I want to present you to them as Irken property. Hold still!” he pushed her into the crimson seat, faster than she could even realize what he was doing, and propped one knee between her legs. His right hand caught her left arm; the other one pressed her right shoulder deep into the backrest to hold her in place.

She wanted to fight back immediately but all of a sudden a metal arm shot out of his Pak equipped with a creepy glowing doohickey at its tip that kind of resembled a laser gun to some extend. It closed in on her left wrist and Set pulled back the sleeve of the uniform to expose the skin, securing her arm with two more spider legs. The glowing contraption came even closer to her skin and Jenna started to hyperventilate in terror when she felt the heat it gave off.

   “W- what are you doing?? What are you…” the rest of her question was cut off by a piercing scream as the laser burned her flesh, leaving deep tracks on her wrist. The smell of scorched skin and burned flesh made her retch but it was over quickly and Set nodded in content before releasing her. Jenna clutched her smarting arm and tears ran down her cheeks. She didn’t dare to look at her wrist.

When she did it anyway she swallowed hard to fight back the bile in her throat. Burned into her skin lay a black, long triangle with a circle in its middle and stylized antennae at the broad end right under the ball of her thumb. Something was written beneath it in an alien language. Smoke was curling up from the morbid brand.

“What is that?” she asked feebly; her brain was completely stunned from the pain and the adrenalin and she carefully blew on the maltreated skin. Set let the laser disappear in his Pak again and rested against the console.

   “An Irken slave-brand. You’re officially in my possession now. You will obey me and serve me and I guess we both _know_ you will do so.” A prideful swing of his antennae and his grin made her scowl with rage. But it went on. He knew that he had complete control over her. “By Irk, if I command it you will give yourself to me once more. If you like it or not.” He ran a finger over her cheek and tickled her ear making her flinch. Then he tilted his head to one side. “Come to think of it… come here.” He bent his finger in a beckoning manner and leant back against the console.

Jenna stared at him and shivered from hatred. But the fear for her family let her stand up automatically and approach the alien. “That’s more like it…” Set mumbled and kissed her longingly. His hand wandered down the arch of her back again to pull her closer, making her stomach convulse in detestation and dread again.

All of a sudden he let up on her and turned around. “But enough of this distraction; We’ve got much to do! First of… what is the staple food of your species? Something that all humans have access to and that is globally available.” He opened a 3D-modell of the planet on the screen and moved it with his hands. Jenna was actually inclined to refuse an answer though the eerily flashing metal collar around her neck seemed to hum threateningly and Sets Pak was clicking suspiciously loud again as well.

She thought she had have enough of lasers and torture for now and sank back into the seat in resign.

   “Water; 70 percent of the human body consists of water. It is vital to our existence and covers nearly two-thirds of our planet’s surface. The first life forms have evolved in water from which we humans descended.” She just recited whatever her brain recalled and that happened to be a lot. It was actually quite distracting from everything around her.

Set blinked in surprise and nodded.

   “Water, hm? Then the organism has to be able to survive in this substance. So I’d have to adjust the surface to the pH-value and create something water-resisting as a coat. But would any material be able to withstand this range of acidity? Synthetic Irken cells would get dissolved by it… and Meekrobic technology? No, it wouldn’t be able to penetrate the human brain-cells…” he muttered on and turned around to walk out of the door. Jenna simply followed him; she wasn’t that eager to stay with the killer-robot and moreover she wanted to know what sort of vile plan the Irk was hatching.

Set walked along the hallway past the bathroom and towards an elevator. She slipped inside the narrow tube and had to huddle against him if she wanted or not.

Perplexed he looked down on her opening one eye wider than the other in sincere confusion.

   “What- where did you come from just now?”

Jenna rolled her eyes; she’d almost laughed at his baffled expression. Despite being such an advanced species the Irk could at times be rather dumb. Well, not exactly dumb, more like too haughty. Every human with a motive like his – in her imagination only a Marvel supervillain could rival him in his viciousness – would expect her to do anything possible to warn her people; but the Irk appeared to be convinced having her under control. Well, she wouldn’t let herself get deterred by that. Solely the threat he posed to her family and friends would keep her from trying something really reckless.

   “I thought I was supposed to help you… so what’s the point in waiting on the bridge then? Where’re you heading anyways; your laboratory?” she replied composed and was surprised she was able to hold back the anger in her voice so well. Set hissed with a start and tried to lean away from her in the cramped space.

   “How do you know that?!” the alien snarled. The human clucked her tongue tucking a strand of hair back behind her ear.

   “Well, you’re going on about creating an organism, some cells… where I come from those things happen in laboratories and thus it’s obvious where you’re heading. I’m really wondering about your limited ability to reason if you claim to be so superior.”

That had been reckless, but the look on his face was really worth the dare. The Irk stared at her completely stunned only able to blink. But he regained his composure before she could shoot him a triumphant grin and puffed up.

   “Tsk, with so many complex plans in my amazing brain I can’t really pay attention to something as small and insignificant as you!” he grunted, flailing his arms before crossing them in front of his chest like a sulky child. Jenna laughed quietly and shook her head. Set’s antennae pressed flat against his head; he didn’t like this kind of laugh at all. It sounded way too intelligent.

 _She’s going to be trouble somehow… maybe I should fry her brain next time, just to be sure_ , he pondered with squinted eyes scratching his chin.   

On the other hand he liked her manners in a strange way. She was brave.

“Weird Earthworm…” he grumbled and stepped out of the elevator which had come to a halt.

This floor of the ship was way darker than the first; a constant beeping, fizzing and hissing sounded muffled from multiple rooms. Apparently this was the floor with the ship’s machinery.

The Irk turned left, a door slid open and revealed a big room full of tools hanging from the ceiling or standing on working tops; Microscope-like computers, screens and tables with glass tubes in any size and shape, and some of them filled with colorful chemicals. Set walked over to a fridge grabbing some more tubes, cold air wafted over the floor like mist.

Jenna looked for a free space on one of the working tables and hopped onto the metal plate. With her legs crossed she watched the alien closely while he gathered more materials and tools to place them on a table in the center. He had put on a pair of safety goggles and a new pair of black gloves and was currently carefully settling one of the microscopes on the work space which unfold upon pressing a button revealing multiple screens.

Set took one of the glass tubes with a blue fluid inside and opened a hatch on the side of the gadget. In this he poured a little bit of the sample and closed the hatch. Curiously Jenna leaned forward to be able to see what was going on. On the screen in the middle a greatly magnified image of some tiny cells moving inside their blue surrounding appeared; on the monitors left and right segments of text blended in; unintelligible to her since it was the same alien script and language which now decorated her wrist as well. Set let a finger run along the lines and nodded in thoughts, moving a little joystick to observe more cells.

She slipped down from the metal plate and came closer to get a better look at the text. In doing so she got really close to his face and Set looked down at her more or less startled.

She didn’t notice his warning glance; too fascinated and concentrated she studied the strange script. She even lifted a finger to follow the line; maybe she would find _something_ useful. The Irk looked at her with interest now all along forgetting about the samples for a moment.

Astounded he eyed her long fingernails reminding him of the claws of predatory species though these were way too short and blunt to really pose a threat. He watched how the light from the screen made her eyes glow and the pupils constricted exposing the bright green iris.

Suddenly he realized she was looking back at him – and had asked a question.

   “Huh?” he uttered not exactly stately and tore his eyes away from her. Jenna blinked in surprise then she smiled knowingly, resting her chin on one hand.

   “I just asked you what the text says… but it’s okay; if I’m more interesting than those cells at the moment I can wait.” She smirked, fluttering her eyelashes. He hissed in indignation even though his fingers twitched to touch these black lashes. Everything about this human body seemed to be supposed to underline something and to detail it in a primitive way. For example her dark eyebrows intensified every single expression, which was working best with this grin of hers; a playful dance driving him almost crazy. The red, soft lips that would so easily bleed were even more fascinating for the reason alone that kissing and touching them felt quite pleasant. He had just noticed these black lashes around her eyes; they made them bigger, darker and framed them like feathers.

Almost forcefully he looked away and growled.

   “You’re distracting me, human…” the Irk grumbled while turning back to his cell culture.

Jenna kept on grinning when suddenly a thought hit her out of nowhere. While she couldn’t read what he was planning to do with the cells and possibly sabotage his work this way, she could definitely buy humanity more time!

If she was able to keep him from working on the cells with all means at her disposal she’d maybe find a way to stop him once and for all.

The most obvious remedy would be herself; or more specifically her body. The Irk didn’t seem to differ much from earth’s men except maybe that he apparently didn’t have any spark of empathy or compassion. But if someone so coldblooded had trouble keeping his eyes from something as insignificant as her he had to at least conceive great desire.

Her insides turned into a burning stone upon realizing that she had to keep the alien from work with sex. But as gruesome as it sounded it would probably work as well.

_I just have to be careful that he doesn’t become suspicious about it… I have to act slowly._ She thought frantically and immediately closed in on him again.

   “I’m sorry… so, what does it say then?” she said softly – god, how hard she had to try not to retch already! – and studied the monitor as innocently as she could. Set took the glass tube and put it back inside the fridge before turning back.

   “This passage here says that the cells are 98% active and alive.” He pointed at the first lines of the text. Jenna attentively listened to his lecture about the organism which Set soon called the ‘Brain-Bug’.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all the kudos so far!! It really gets my spirit up! ♥


	8. Resistance - Pt. 3

### Resistance - Part 3

After half an hour she knew enough to feel sick at the thought of what was to come upon mankind, and was even more determined to hinder the Irk from completing his project. He had taken some blood from her while she had been unconscious, and also samples of her cells, to develop the organism based on his results to fit the human body; what he told her ever so carefree.

This way he had come up with a diabolical plan:

He wanted to release the specialized organism – actually a cell-sized robot – into the oceans so that it would spread into humanity’s water-supplies through condensation and the resulting rain. This way every human being would consume the robot. Once inside the human body the robot would enter a vein and attach to an erythrocyte, which it was able to detect by its amino acids sequences and the bound iron atoms between them, and travel into the brain. There it would detach from the erythrocyte, attracted by the brain’s electric impulses, and multiply. Then the army of Brain-Bugs would occupy the human’s cerebrum and cerebellum, seizing control over the host’s mind once it were to receive the signal to fully activate. The human would lose his free will acting out the orders of the organism that had taken over his neural system.

This way Set should be able to turn all humans – or at least a vast percentage of them – into brainless zombies and herd them together until his leaders were to arrive.

He had told her all of this bluntly, apparently still convinced that she couldn’t and wouldn’t do anything against him.

Jenna clutched the edge of the table and swallowed hard.

_I have to act at once… as fast as he develops this organism I can’t do with slowly and carefully!_

Her thoughts were racing but then she suddenly realized how to proceed. It was almost ridiculous.

She started to pick at her uniform, ruffle her hair and flicked it over her shoulder. She stretched herself and let out a purring yawn. The fact that the Irk stopped his work and the sound of moved glass tubes subsided confirmed that he was watching her again. Now to the main part of her plan: Apparently unintentional she knocked down one of the small metal tools lying on the table so that it fell to the ground with a clang.

   “Oops…” she purred surprised and reached down for it. When she sensed the uniform ride up she felt so pathetic that tears of shame burned in her eyes.

But the plump action had the desired effect; suddenly the alien stood behind her, grabbing her arm and turning her around to him.

   “You’re distracting me again…” he growled low and looked into her eyes menacingly.

Jenna raised an eyebrow in played surprise. Then she gave him a peeved grin.

   “Well to me it seems like you _want_ to get distracted.” She shot back, letting a finger dance over his chest. Set’s antennae flinched back and he bared his teeth.

   “Where do you get the idea I want to get distracted from my mission by _you_ out of all things, human?!” he hissed and shoved her back. Jenna managed to catch herself quickly and put one hand on her hip.

   “Oh come on! It’s obvious that you’re sexually frustrated! And now that you’ve got a taste of _this_ you can’t get enough of it!” pleased with her performance she noticed how he trembled and his face turned a darker shade. _Way to go!_ She applauded herself and took a coquetting step towards him. “I’m just saying: you keep staring at me… maybe it would be best for you to give in to your desires, _Master_? Then maybe you could finally concentrate on your project and I wouldn’t feel so gaped at! This way we’d both trade on it!” with an angry gesture she shoved him away, which made her stagger more than the alien, turned on her heel and flounced out of the laboratory.

Set just watched her open-mouthed; one of his eyelids twitched manically.

Jenna was already afraid her plan hadn’t worked out when something grabbed hold of her neck and pushed her against the hallway wall. Luckily she’d turned her face around, otherwise her nose would’ve ended up smashed. Set’s metal arm tore the skin of her neck. With one hand he held her arms twisted on her back. His cold breath touched her ear.

   “Oh, I’m not sure _you’re_ going to benefit from this… when I’m done with you you’ll beg to _perish_ under my hands…” he growled with tensed voice; she could practically sense his rage, and also his arousal as she noticed triumphing. Set pulled on her arm and she hissed from the pain.

The Irk dragged her towards the elevator, smacked his free hand on the control panel and started biting her neck which was awfully painful since he wasn’t exactly gentle with his teeth. It was hot and narrow inside the elevator. She heard him breathe; felt the armor pressed against her back and his hands touching her through the uniform. Then the elevator stopped but not at the command deck.

The room was dark; she couldn’t make out anything as he pushed her into the darkness just to grab her again and pull her back to him; his tongue grazed her lips as he turned her around.

Jenna took fright just then and wanted to abort her plan; she was too afraid at the thought of what was about to happen. She pushed him away but Set just laughed scoffingly and grabbed her left wrist, right where the branding was still fresh. The pain flared up once more and she screamed in agony until his mouth pressed against her lips and his tongue coiled around hers. Panting she tried to breathe but his hand was on her throat, squeezing it, while he extended the kiss mercilessly.

Her vision went black; she hold onto his arm as her knees gave in and her sight blurred from the tears welling up. Then, finally, he released her. Her breath was broken and desperate and her heart was pounding for dear life. Set laughed again; darker and colder. More dangerous.

He caught Jenna to lift her up and grate his fingers over her behind. The sensation made her shiver involuntarily.

Suddenly he pushed her away, almost threw her, but she landed on a rather soft ground in one piece.  Hastily she sat up. In the darkness it was only because of the slight glowing of her collar that she saw his eyes gleaming as he slowly approached her. The Irk bent over her and snapped his fingers;

Cable shot from the ceiling, wrapping around her wrists and ankles. With a surprised yelp she was yanked into the air until she ended up kneeling on the soft surface, her arms pulled up to her head and her legs spread apart.

From somewhere next to her a dim light source made it possible for Jenna to make out at least a part of her surrounds while it allowed Set to witness the fear on her face.

   “Well… _now_ try again to oppose your master and disobey… bow down before me!” he was standing in front of the bed she was kneeling on, towering over her and grinning with bared teeth. Jenna felt how the cold cables started to press her down and fought them with newly kindling wrath. When the thought of her family crossed her mind and the things he might do to them if she struggled she froze and let herself be pushed into the mattress without resistance.

Set snorted amused and lifted her chin with a finger. The look on his face reminded her of a very intelligent predator playing roughly with his dinner before cutting its throat. “Oh, don’t worry, I’ll leave your human family out of this one. I want you to fight! Show me that you are stronger than my will and I’ll leave you be… well, for the moment.” He casually crossed his arms before his chest giving her an inviting nod. “I say: roll over.”

Jenna already felt the coil of the wires but she gritted her teeth and threw herself against the metal’s pull. Her arms started to ache quickly since they were still pulled up behind her and the cables kept dragging without mercy so that she could hear a faint crunching in her shoulders.

She stood no chance; not a minute later she was flat on her back, her arms pulled over the edge of the mattress and her legs parted in a way that made her cheeks burn with hate and shame.

   “You bastard!” she growled and tried desperately to at least bring her legs into a less obvious position. With the result that she was gifted a cramp in both of her calves and groaned in pain. Set laughed his raspy laugh, grabbed her cheeks with one hand and squeezed her lips into a moue.

   “Ha! How adorable… but stop playing around already and show me your spirit! Or are you surrendering just now?” he slapped her playfully and tilted his head to look at her reaction. Jenna scowled defiantly, not moving a muscle, and stared at a distant point in the dim room.

Set furrowed his brows in an angry confusion. When she still didn’t responded he jumped across the bed using his spider legs only to turn around and suddenly bending closely over her. His hands punched into the mattress right next to her head. “Oooh, you… you’re maddening me! I know exactly what you were planning to do: With your little play you tried to tease me so that I would interrupt my work! But now that things aren’t quite turning out the way you desired you’re simply driving me crazy with that horrible dourness of yours and actually keep me from work _this_ way because I want to _torture_ you! Why in the name of Blorgh’s flea-infested rat-people population are you trying to prevent the inevitable? Huh, human?!”

She yanked up her head and smashed her forehead right into his face with enough force that her teeth collided against each other. The alien recoiled in pain and surprise and she fought the cables again, kicking, wresting to every side, and screamed angrily.

Finally she sank back worn out; the restrains had coiled tighter around her ankles and wrists during her raging and now warm blood dripped in alarmingly big trickles from under the metal.

Jenna spat out a dry sob and hit her head frustrated against the bed.

   “What do you think, hm? You goddamn idiot! I’m trying to give my species, _shit_ , my _friends_ a chance to survive your stupid invasion, you sick bastard! Wouldn’t you do the same if an alien life form were to abduct you and now tried to wipe out your people? While they are still living their lives in complete _ignorance_ without a chance to survive?!” she shouted strained and burst out into tears. Her body trembled so hard with every sob that the taut cables vibrated.

Set shook his head punch-drunk and slowly opened his eyes. With a growl he came closer again but made sure to stay clear of her head.

   “I would give my life in an honorable fight, leaving my enemies no useful information! I would even try to kill some of them right along, given the chance!” he hissed offended.

Jenna broke into a hysteric laughter and bent her toes to a painful extend, the only thing she was still able to move.

   “ _Great_! Since you already gathered all the information you need I just skip to the part where I die! I will kill myself!” she yanked on the cables until blood dripped on her face. “I couldn’t face my family anyway knowing that I’m the one responsible for their demise! I’m just going to hold my breath until I’m dead! Or even better: I just make sure to lose as much blood as possible so that my brain doesn’t get enough oxygen! It’s just the same thing; except maybe you would stoop so low in a terrific act of pity and _kill me_!” She screamed the words right in his face and threw herself against the cables. Set’s antennae distinctly picked up the sound of skin and flesh tearing.

Completely stunned and confused he could only watch the human’s attempt to actually mutilate herself in her rage. Relentlessly she threw her body against the metal, winding like a beast trapped in a Meekrobian E-Snare*. Her blood was now splashing across the bed, tainting the sheets with a burning red. Set had never seen such red blood before.

He didn’t feel pity or empathy for her; this kind of Code wasn’t enabled in his Pak, if there was a Code like that at all. But he _did_ feel solidarity for her actions and something like… pride.

He was proud to call such a unique test-subject, and now also slave, his own. Jenna was strong; she had proved it frequently. She had neither let the Mnemograph* nor the torture and rape keep her from trying to escape, to sabotage his work and to constantly disobey him! She was brave and loyal – at least towards her own kind. She wasn’t one of those slaves you’d find groveling in your shadow always eager to slobber: “Yes master, pleasure master! May I lick your boots, master?!”

The human was a challenge, and a good one, too.

Something suddenly clicked in his mind – in this moment she was the most desirable being in the whole galaxy to him; and he wanted to end her misery.

With gentle force he placed a hand on her shoulder and held her down.

   “Stop this… I get it already.” He calmly ordered the human and the cables loosened a little so they wouldn’t cut her anymore. Jenna bared her teeth and glared at him until she noticed the look in his eyes and lay still. Set cautiously touched her cheek with the back of his hand, slowly wiping the stream of tears away. Her growling subsided into a low whine; she rolled over to her side wrapping her arms around her body to become even smaller for she feared he was done with the torturing part and had something else in mind. The cables retracted entirely now, leaving bloody trails on the mattress winding like snakes away from the four wet patches.

The Irk stroked back her hair, lifted her up in his arms and used a spider leg to push a button on the side of the bed. More metal arms descended from the ceiling and swiftly removed the dirty sheets, replacing them with clean ones. After that was done he put the human back on the bed. She was still trembling from her silent sobs; her fingers had started to cramp uncontrollably and she was still losing blood from the cuts in her arms and legs.

Set turned away and walked over to the elevator. “Hold on just a little longer, I’m getting something to patch up your wounds.” With a whirr the door slid shut behind him and Jenna was left in darkness, only disrupted by the pulsing of her explosive collar.

She cursed herself in her mind. Why had she been so naïve as to believe that Set wouldn’t see right through her little chicanery? But his odd behavior just now had sparked a little hope in her that it hadn’t all been for naught. Maybe this whole ordeal _would_ pay off eventually…

She sucked in air through gritted teeth as a sudden rush of pain shook her body. Her wrists and ankles were on fire! Panic rose in her: what if she _did_ bleed to death before Set would come back? Frantically she tried to cover the gashes with the sheet she was lying on but she just couldn’t pull enough of it up to even cover one wrist!

Before she could freak out completely a cold hand on her forehead made her freeze up.

   “What are you doing _now_? You’re going to tear your ligaments if you keep moving around like that!” Set grunted right next to her head and a weight at her side told her that he had sat down on the bed. Red light brightened the room once again.  Set tossed something on the mattress, a small packet, and reached for her. Hesitating she let him grab her arm while always expecting more pain. Despite her fear he just inspected her bleeding wrist and turned it upwards. Almost gently he wiped away most of the blood with a little towel before opening the box and dropping a little piece of foil the size of a book on the sheets. He rested her arm on his leg and caught the foil at its edges.

Jenna watched in awe how he stretched the foil to at least twice its size without tearing it. Carefully he pressed the resulting bandage on the gaping wound, wrapping the ends tightly around her wrist. At the first sting of pain followed a sudden numbness, slowly spreading through her arm until she could barely lift a finger and her wrist was nothing more than a dull throbbing. Astonished she lifted her hand in front of her face and tucked on the strapping; the material had molten into one seamless, tight fitting piece that didn’t loosen no matter how much she moved her hand.

Set gave her a scolding look and she quickly held out her other arm. He treated it with another one of these miraculous bandages as well as her ankles. In a last moment of clear thoughts she realized that the material had to be giving off some kind of painkillers, and a strong one, too, because she already started to feel dizzy and dopey as if drunk again. But maybe it was just the blood-loss…

Set carelessly tossed the box to the ground and stood up once more. With half closed eyes she watched him, her thoughts lost in the drug’s buzz. His armor disappeared in his Pak and he took off his gloves and boots, putting them aside next to the bed. Naked and shine on by the dim light he walked over to the giant wardrobe embedded into the wall and pulled out a pair of fricking shorts that he put on before returning to the bed and turning off the light.

    “I want my _clothes_ back…” she slurred and her small fingers touched the black cloth.

    “Ey, quit it!” Set hissed and grabbed hold of her hand. “You have to sleep now, human, you’re talking nonsense.” The alien ranted with a pout. Then all of a sudden he wrapped his long arms around her body, pulling her into a tight embrace. If Jenna had been only half as stoned as she was right now she would have freed herself from that hug with a startled yelp. Thus she just lay still and yawned. A vibrating chirr tuned from his chest. “You’re really warm… at least something _useful_.” He cooed softly, his face buried in her hair, and heaved a sigh.

Jenna couldn’t keep another yawn. Her eyelids grew heavier by the minute – somewhere in her mushy brain she recognized how unbelievably hungry she really was – and not a second later she was fast asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> * E-Snare: Electric trap used by Meekrob as defence-mechanism.   
> * Mnemograph: The device Set used to read Jenna's mind.
> 
> Just imagine them cuddling~ without the punching and killing... just cuddling


	9. The Tallest

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter has it all: the sex, the violence and the Tallest  
> Just a little warning for you ♥

### \- 6 The Tallest -

_Spaceship - Upper Floor -  9 hours later_

  
Jenna woke up with a headache - again -, a weird taste in her mouth and a stomach that felt like it was already digesting itself! Three days without food definitely weren't good. She felt nauseous and on top of it all the sun was blaring her. Taken aback she hoisted herself up from the mattress and stared at the light.

Indeed, the sun was shining brightly through the glassed wall of the room, lighting it up so that she could  make out her surrounding for the first time. The room was entirely round and to a third glassed in. The floor was the usual white metal that could be found everywhere on the upper floors of the ship, but the walls had a nice rose tone to them. Countless cables, wires and tubes covered the ceiling like they did in the whole ship.

She flinched at the thought of the cables and quickly looked at the sun again. It was too marvelous for words to watch it from space and not Earth. But even beholding space itself… she let her gaze wander, still drowsy from the painkillers. There weren't any stars to be seen, the sun's light was just too bright from this angle but she did recognize the Earth shimmering at the edge of the panorama window as well as Venus which was already a whole lot smaller. She thought seeing Mercury but that could've easily been a sunspot.

Her stomach convulsed with and angry growl that made her squirm in pain; a panicked flouncing next to her caught her attention at the same time.

    "W-what just growled in here?!" the Irk stammered, still half-asleep - his eyes were already about to close again - and looked around in confused alertness. Jenna snickered; it was just too funny the way he was sitting there with his antennae waving into every direction trying to find the threat that had woken the oh-so mighty invader. He finally looked at her in confusion but was quick to furrow his brows and look at her in  _angry_ confusion. Before he was able to hiss something, her stomach brutally cramped again and she groaned agonized.

    "D-do you have anything to eat? With proteins, fat, sugar, vitamins, that kind of stuff?" she slurred while clutching her belly. "I'm so starved I think I might pass out or something."

For all she knew there were currently stars dancing before her eyes and black dots as well. He wanted to give her a snarly comeback but then he just clucked his tongue - an oddly high tone - and a little microphone shot from his Pak.

    "SIR, fetch me some of the Earth-food and a bottle of the water." The mic retracted again and Set leaned back into the pillows with his arms crossed behind his head, watching her thoughtfully. Jenna noticed something strange.

    "How are you actually resting on your back without breaking your spine? Doesn't the thing on your back make it kinda hard?" she asked curiously while lying down on her side to stop the nasty spinning inside her head. Though she tried to keep an eye on him as well as the door. Every time the alien had  _that_  particular expression anything could happen.

He turned to the side to reveal the mattress that had formed a little well around the Pak so he wouldn't snap his back in half. "Wow… I'd want a bed like that." She murmured and picked at the bandages around her wrist. "What exactly  _is_  that thing anyways? You seem to be able to mind-control it, so it has to be connected directly to your neural system." She played the innocent girl, still attending to her patch while her head slowly started to clear. In the back of her head she already plotted to rip this thing off his back if the chance would present itself, right along with his medulla.

Set widened his eyes.

A split second both of them just looked at each other; then he shot forward and pinned her to the bed; his eyes had turned into leery, crimson slits and his fingers menacingly closed tighter around her wrists.

    "You're planning  _something_  again… are you thinking about tearing the Pak from my back? Ha! I'd love to see you try, human… your arms would give up before you were even able to lift it! And yes, my Pak  _is_  connected to my neural system. It's a control unit, a transmitter, tracker and tool box in one. My almighty leaders, the Tallest, can locate me with it and send me orders. I can lock into the main computer of this ship and upgrade my Pak to make it even stronger and deadlier! That's all you need to know…" he snarled, nodded, and finally left her be. Jenna rolled her eyes when he glanced away and sat up again with her legs drawn to her body since the unexpected motion had made her even sicker.

With clacking steps the robot entered the room and tossed something on the bed. She caught the bottle of water and reached for the wrapped-up thing. Her mouth watered the second she tore the wrapping off: it was a sandwich.

Famished she wanted to wolf it down but stopped shortly to smell it cautiously. It smelled like an actual sandwich = delicious! Quickly she took a bite and moaned at the amazing taste that literally exploded in her mouth. She chewed down despite the growing nausea and couldn't really swallow before taking the next one.

Set had crossed his legs with his elbow on one knee and his chin resting in his hand, watching her eat.

After she was done with the first half Jenna opened the bottle and emptied a quarter of it with one greedy gulp. The second half of the sandwich lasted a few seconds longer because she ate slowly and with relish to savor the taste and the feeling of  _eating_ something. She drank another half of the bottle and flopped on her side exhausted but sighing relieved. Her stomach had apparently shrunk for that little bit of food already made her feel stuffed.

Set grinned amused and flicked the wrapper off the bed. SIR caught it and burned it.

A moment she allowed the feeling to soothe her but only a minute before she sat back up, pretending to observe the sun. In reality she was watching the Irk from the corner of her eye; more than the food she had needed the water. Now she felt better and could thin straight again, and was already working on a new plan to prevent the process of the brain bugs. Set seemed to still be really sleepy the way he tried to keep his eyes open and not let her out of sight.

The robot disappeared again but only once the elevator had gone she dared to make a move. Carefully she skidded over to the edge of the bed and tried to slip behind it, when he grabbed her arm, faster than she could react, pulling her towards him. Totally caught off-guard Jenna staggered over her own feet and ungracefully landed on his bare chest. Set shot her a warning glare when she pushed away from him, and held her in place. When he spoke his voice was a low rumbling, sleepy, but with an edge to it that sent shivers down her spine.

"You weren't seriously trying to escape again just now, were you? SIR would tear you limb from limb even without my order…" he hissed with an indignant baring of his teeth before his look turned musing and he started to kiss her neck. "I think it'd be for the best if you stayed here…"

She could feel the enormous power behind his muscles as he pulled her even closer, and just let it happen. Things would only get worse if she decided to fight the alien right now and she would wind up having to deal with a  _really_  pissed alien afterwards. And yet… it wasn't exactly that horrible; she didn’t feel like she was going to throw up from disgust and self loathing but rather somewhat anticipating and constricted.

Set took the hem of her uniform to strip it off, throwing it down next to the bed and pulling her into another kiss; he didn't have distinct lips like humans did but his were uncreased and soft, almost cool. He ran his hands slowly up and down her back, feeling for every bump and mole as she supported herself on his chest. With one hand she reached up, looking for his antennae. Carefully she touched one of them, stroking the thin stalk from its broad base to the sickle-like tip, rubbing it gently between her thumb and index; deep inside her mind she was still so overwhelmed that something so alien actually existed. Set quivered under her touch and took a hissing breath. Not sure what to make of that she pulled her hand back but he caught it, looking into her eyes and frowning slightly.

"Go on…" he mumbled husky and kissed her more demandingly. The tone of his voice caused a sting in her abdomen. She reached up for the antennae once more, let them slip through her fingers, twirling the tip and giving it a gentle pull. The Irk sighed loudly while his tongue slid past her lips and coiled around hers. When Jenna gave the base a firm rub with her thumb he rolled her over onto one side, shuffling down her body to bite her nipple.

She hissed at the sudden pain in surprise and whined as the alien pulled on it with his lips and sucked.

The antennae pressed against her mouth; she licked them with the tip of her tongue. Another trembling shook his body, he pulled her closer and pushed one hand between her legs, feeling for her most sensitive spots while biting her bittersweet and painfully gentle.

At one point she had started to breathe little sighs without realizing, caressing one antenna with her tongue and the other with her hand. Suddenly he skidded down even further and tickled her belly button what made her laugh out in surprise. Set glanced up to her, sliding down just a little bit more. Jenna swallowed nervously. "I like your laugh…" he said quietly, dealing the belly button another flick with his tongue that made her insides twist. "But even more I enjoy these little, high sounds…" with this he bowed his head down and slowly licked over her groin until he reached the little nub, rubbing and teasing it. She sucked in air through her teeth but couldn't prevent a little mewl to escape her lips and she reflexively reached for him.

Her fingers found the antennae again and she almost yanked on them, her mind overwhelmed by a rush of pleasure. Set growled but quickly turned his attention back to her clit. With this long tongue of his he enwrapped the swollen nub, giving it a pull. Jenna's intakes went from panting to soft screams and she automatically arched her back. Set took heart from her reaction and grew more licentious and bolder. He inserted a finger into her warm entrance and was greeted by a sudden wetness as he curved his digit up, pressing against that other sensitive spot. Jenna clawed into the sheets; she had closed her eyes, biting her lips trying not to lose her mind.

Set let up on her, slid back up and gazed down at her face - her cheeks red and her breath hot and sweet - and took it in between his big hands, caressing her burning cheeks with his thumbs before he leaned in for a kiss. Jenna returned it ever so tentatively.

The Irk grabbed her leg to pull it over his own, pressing even closer to her body. A spider leg removed the shorts he wore, throwing them carelessly across the room and she felt his cock rising up between them. He sucked on her tongue, bit and pushed inside her without a warning. Jenna pressed her hands against his chest with a gasp, a last impulse to shove him away, but he grasped her hips to draw her closer again. This way she could just wrap her arms around his neck to have at least something to hold onto as he quickened his pace, his intakes already shallow and ragged. Every thrust made her sigh brightly and she held tightly to him, arching her back.

He rolled over on his back, pulling her on top of him in the same motion. Jenna couldn't do much against it, she felt the massive muscles playing beneath her and realized that she was a doll to his whim; he could so easily tear her apart without batting an eye and yet he didn't. In fact the alien made sure she was enjoying herself: his hands, although rough and strong, were eagerly petting every inch of skin they could reach. Set wrapped his hands around her waist and deepened the thrusts into a steady rocking, causing enough friction to make her moan in surprise. Suddenly he sat up, crossing his legs and moving her up and down on his lap. She held onto his neck again with a start and couldn't keep a short yelp as the angle changed again, driving her closer to the edge.

She reached up for his antennae to deal them little pulls and pinches. Set bowed his head at the unexpected touch. His hoarse moan right next to her ear made her shiver and he felt the tension inside him building up to be soon released. Jenna whined throaty, she was sweating which caused his skin to sparkle from the acidity. All of a sudden she gasped ecstatically for air, digging her nails into his shoulder. Set growled, just to kiss her open mouth passionately and when she actively  _licked_  his tongue he came so hard that she hissed, reaching climax herself and punching her fist on his shoulder.

For a moment it went dead silent and time stood still. Set simply collapsed onto his back, pulling the exhausted human in his arms with him. The Pak sent a vicious shock through his body to wake him up. He regained consciousness and shook his head, numbed from the jolt, only to find her sprawled out on his chest with her head turned to the side to catch her breath. He lifted a heavy hand to run his fingers over her cheek. She whimpered quietly, huffing a pinched sigh.

    "Okay, I admit it... that was actually better than getting torn to pieces by that creepy robot of yours." Jenna muttered and raised her head long enough to blow against one of the antennae that was just limply hanging from his head but now perked up and twitched, almost crinkling at the sensation. Set chirped startled and opened his eyes, giving her a drowsy grin.

    "Did you... expect anything else?" He chuckled lowly, grabbing her hand and kissing the warm palm. "You move quite instinctively... Do all humans have sex then?" He asked somewhat confused but not without the usual curiosity. The bold question made her blink before she snorted a laugh, although she was more than confused about the sudden turn of events.

On one hand she was puzzled about her own reaction to it all which she accepted with a certain resent and shame; on the other hand it irked her like nothing else that the alien seemed to have transformed into a little kitten. When she didn't find a satisfying explanation for all of this she put the blame on the painkillers, thus answering his question with the same boldness:

    "Well, once humans reach a certain age they start to collect experience on the matter... But yes, leaving some special cases aside you could say that every human has sex at least once in their life."

He widened his eyes in disbelieve.

    "But... you're sterile right?!" His shocked question made her crinkle her nose.

    "What does that even mean? That would be impossible to pull through! No, we're all fertile and get children." Jenna cocked a brow at his marveled state and wondered if he was actually sterilized. That would ease at least some of her worries.

He huffed.

    "No wonder you are so many earthworms!" But now  _her_  curiosity had been awoken again.

    "And you? How do you Irken handle these things?" She freed her hand from his grasp and started to draw little circles on his chest as if it was the most normal thing to do in this situation. Set  let his hand rest on her back while crossing the other one behind his head ever so casually.

    "Usually Irken invaders don't have any sexual intercourse and don't feel the need to, the coding of our Paks blocks these privileges until you rise up in the hierarchy. Only the best elite soldiers and even fewer invaders, those with the highest scores on conquered planets, get the authorization to enable the Code 900." He closed his eyes and nodded solemnly on this serious matter. Jenna looked up in confusion and shot him a puzzled glance.

    "And that's why you got the code? But you didn't even conquer Earth yet..." She recoiled when realization struck her. "Wait a second... was it because of me?!" She sounded outraged. The alien thought about it for a second, eyeing her as if he gauging whether or not to tell her. Then he just shrugged.

    "Yes; my Tallest allowed me the activation after I asked them for it with the reason to get to know everything about you that might be helpful... and... well, let's just say it was worth the dare." He shot forward to bite her nose. Jenna flinched and mewled at the pain.

    "The dare? Was there anything... dangerous about it?" She went on and the Irk grimaced.

    "They probably only gave me the authorization because the thought of me suffering from gruesome infections and rotting sexual organs amused them... they sometimes have a strange taste of humor but they are my leaders and I respect them no matter their quirks." At this he shot a short glance to the ceiling like someone who'd just mocked their gods. Jenna grunted.

    "'A strange taste of humor'..." She echoed. To her these so called 'Tallest' sounded even worse than the invader she was currently lying on. Still pretty weary she sank back on the smooth chest. "So, we're you actually interested in 'getting to know me' or just desperate to score for once?" She had quite a strange taste of humor, too, Set realized and flattened his antennae to his head; he didn't really want to talk about the why's and how's of this topic. Something told him he would be vulnerable if he did.

    "Hmm... you  _are_  interesting. I've been to many planets by now with many different life forms... but something like you?" He nodded again emphatically. "You are definitely interesting. In some ways you remind me of my own kind, only hairier and uncivilized." He picked at her hair and smoothed it back. "Are all humans as small as you?" He taunted and grinned. She flicked against the spot where his nose would've been.

    "No, I'm one of the tinier beings." She laughed. "Some of us reach up to 2 meters, especially the men. I'm only 1,55 meters tall; or, well, small."

Confused he lifted his head from the pillow and propped himself up on his elbows.

    "Two what-now? What's a meter?" He wanted to know agitatedly; he hated not to know everything. Jenna sat up with a sigh and got out of the bed. Set went silent and watched her walking around, still so very naked. The sun gleamed on the tanned skin and her brown hair was surrounded by a faint red halo. His fingers twitched.

She picked up the pink uniform only to give it a reluctant look.

    "Don't you have anything else I could wear? This thing starts to smell... Also I would die for some underwear..." She hissed the last part under her breath. He must've heard it anyhow the way he was grinning as he rose from the bed, too; his legs felt weak and he was awfully hungry... This sex-thing was really exhausting.

    "I can construct a suit for you, this way I don't have to worry about you getting blown to bits by other invaders... Not that anyone would dare cross me, though." He chattered, totally ignoring her shocked stare and walked past her to the dresser hidden inside the back wall of the room, touching a glowing panel, not unlike the one in the bathroom. The wall parted to reveal countless similar pieces of clothing, mostly black, pink and crimson.

Lost in thoughts he searched the piles for pants, let them drop to the floor and picked another one. Jenna sat down on the edge of the bed again and waited; fascinated she let her fingers run over the sheets. They felt strange and alien but not bad and she found herself wondering what it was made of. Was space-cotton a thing?

Finally the Irk nodded contented and tossed her a pair of black pants along with another pink uniform. "Until then, this'll have to do." He ejected his armor from his Pak and inspected it concentrated, looking for invisible specks of dust while watching her getting dressed from the corner of his eyes.

This uniform was sleeveless and just long enough to fall on her thighs. Jenna turned in every direction to get a feeling of how this thing looked on her. Set smirked at the human's twisting and touched the panel again. Now the parts of the wall that had built the dresser's doors flipped to turn into a giant mirror. When she finished another turn and looked back up she noticed her reflection and approached the mirror surprised. A sense of aesthetic room design wasn't exactly what she would've guessed in such a militarily oriented species.

    "Looks good on me." She stated with a little smile and turned towards the alien, catching him looking quickly in another direction and clearing his throat.

    "Yeah, kinda..." He growled and made a brusque motion with his head. Jenna rolled her eyes. If she kept doing that she'd end up with another headache. So she walked over to the elevator.

"Alright then, let's teach you something about the human's metric system."

 

They entered another laboratory containing mostly computers, screens, scanners and boxes with flat frames stacked in them which turned out to be some sort of holographic data pads. At her interested question the Irk simply explained that this room was mainly used as an archive.

Set sank on the chair in front of a giant screen and brought up a file of data from her; it was her medical file so to speak, thus containing a complete measuring of her body as well.

    "Okay, how tall am I in Irken units?" Jenna asked and sat on one of the boxes next to him.

    "Pfff, you're not exactly tall... you're merely 93 sik short, that's how tall I was ten stellar cycles ago." He sneered, poking her side with a sharp fingertip.

    "Ugh! Please... Please don't do that." She whined and finished her trail of thoughts.

"Well, I'm 155 centimeters tall, so just divide the 93 sik by 155 and you got the equivalent ratio to one centimeter."

Set did what she told him but paused suddenly and tilted his head.

    "Wait a second... you said something about meters! What the hell is a senti-meter now?!" He sounded genuinely angry as if she had tricked him. Jenna facepalmed.

    "Ah, yes, sorry. I was thinking too quickly." Another angry look which she gladly took, "One meter is the basic unit of length in the metric system. A centimeter is a hundredth of a meter. Now, if I am one meter and 55 tall, how many centimeters are that?" - "155." Came the prompt answer. Set nodded deeply pleased. He liked easy things. Jenna smiled.

    "Right! Okay now, how tall are you in sik?" She continued and rested her arms on the table. Set typed in some symbols and let the computer do the math. "What does it say?"

    "Well, I am about 135 sik tall - an amazing height by the way, I'm just 14 sik smaller than my Tallest - and 2,25 meters in your meteric system." He nodded again in pride, crossing his arms in front of his chest. "How tall are  _your_  tallest Earthworms?"

She was torn from her calculations by his question and shook her head to get it back together. According to what she'd just learned his leaders had to be something around 2,50 meters tall what seemed really disturbing to imagine.

    "It's called  _metric_  system; a normal man would be around 1,80 m tall, a woman maybe 1,65? I don't really know what the average is for that and even then it's actually hard to tell with 7 billion people living all over the planet." She answered with a shrug and didn't notice how he swallowed with a shocked blink.

7 billion aliens taller than most of the Irken soldiers and lower invaders... Only experienced invaders and top class soldiers reached up to this height. It was a good thing he planned to destroy them from afar, a direct assault on the planet's surface was out of the question. And destroying the humans appeared more preferable, since no one would want a slave taller than them. Set looked at Jenna. If there were more earth-women as small as her...  _they_  would make for perfect slaves. Someone like her - only not that rebellious - would be a fine gift for his Tallest. Just thinking about the pleasures this small frame was able to create made his antennae shiver.

Of course the almighty Tallest had Code 900 enabled but since there weren't so many female Irken of rank and height... A slave like that would be just the thing!

He rubbed his hands together with a grin. But that would've to wait for now. There were other things to be taken care of first.

Set stood up from the chair and beckoned Jenna to follow.

    "Come now, I promised you a suit."

They returned to the main floor where SIR was patrolling - or rather stalking - the hallway, and entered the hangar she had first ended up in. The human shot the hatch a longing look. Set turned towards a tube-like machine, tall enough for him to stand in it, which opened to show its insides made from scanners, lasers and cables. He wanted her to stand on the glowing plate in the middle but Jenna hesitated. Cramped tubes with wires made her nervous lately; and this one had a striking resemblance to an iron maiden. The Irk rolled his eyes.

    "Come on, step inside - nothing bad will happen to you, just don't move around." with a cynical glare she stepped into the tube and held her breath as the doors shut. The scanners and lasers glared brightly while circling around her body, filling the room with their green light. She shut her eyes and listened to her heart pounding as she tried not to freak out.

But then it was all over again; the door opened and she quickly stumbled out of the tube, checking herself for any injuries before turning towards the screen Set was standing in front of. He was typing short commands, touching various symbols on the monitor.

The sudden thought to sabotage the hatch crossed her mind but being that far out in space it was most likely to kill her. The tube's door shut again and the whole gizmo started humming and whirring wildly. Curiously Jenna walked around it, wondering what was happening inside. Yet Set grabbed her arm again, dragging her along towards the bridge.

    "SIR, prepare some snacks for me and then monitor the suit's processing while I take the earthworm to present her to the Tallest." He ordered the robot who saluted in return before snappily turning around and marching down the hallway. Jenna frowned upon hearing this annoying nickname for the umpteenth time. She stopped mid-step and although Set could've easily just pulled her along behind him, he staggered, turning around in surprise with his jaw pushed forward in an angry fashion. Jenna looked him in the eyes just as upset.

"What!?" He snapped.

    "Jenna!" She shot back in the same barking tone.

    "Huh?"

She gave him an annoyed groan.

    "I have a name, alright? And I would prefer that over 'earthworm', 'human' or anything else if you don't mind!" She stated, freed her wrist from his grasp and crossed her arms in front of her body, both to shield herself and to show him just how done she was. The branding itched like hell under the bandage...

Set widened his eyes and just stood there for a moment. Then he opened his mouth, raising a hand and furrowing his brows. But when her determined face didn't falter and she didn't flinch he dropped his hand again, giving an angry shrug, and turned around to continue stomping down the hallway.

    "Pfff... humans... if you insist..." He growled through gritted teeth, his antennae cut through the air in fury. "Jenna..."

    "Why, thank you,  _Master_." She purred satisfied watching him pause in his steps before going on. While she couldn't see the outraged snarl she could clearly imagine it.

On the bridge, which doors slid open as if never destroyed, Set slumped into his pilot seat, resting his elbows on the armrest and tipping his fingers together.

    "Computer, contact the  _Massive_ , open a com link to the Tallest." He barked, stroking back his antennae with one hand. The big screen activated and a large Irken symbol appeared, similar to the one on her wrist, yet different. This one had two circles in the middle instead of just one, making it look like a face.

She had positioned herself next to the seat to watch the screen. Set turned his head a bit and suddenly shot around shocked. "Down you...!" He hissed, grabbing hold of her shoulder and pulling her down to the ground with enough force to make her knees smash on the floor. Jenna glared at the Irk when the image changed and two giant aliens appeared.

The left one had burningly red eyes and was actually drinking something through a straw. The one on the right had purple eyes and was just now crossing his arms behind his back. Skeptically they both gleamed down at Jenna and Set who straightened himself in his seat. "My almighty Tallest, Invader Set asking for an audience to present my prisoner and test subject to you!" He saluted with a wide grin, gesturing at Jenna with his other hand, who stared up to the two Irken leaders that had leaned a bit closer themselves.

She didn't understand a word they said, Set was talking in Irken, a language made of many clicking, snarling, and chirping sounds. But it only took her one good look to know his leaders were eyeing her with utmost vileness in their eyes.

    "She's pathetically small..." The one with the violet eyes commented, holding up his two long, claw-like fingers in front of his face, pressing them slightly together as if he was trying to squish her head. She wanted to hiss something quite unfriendly in his direction but Set stood up from his seat, pulling Jenna to her feet in the motion so that she had to swallow the comment for now.

    "Oh, but my Tallest, the human is - believe it or not - 93 sik tall and she's one of the smallest of her kind! Luckily her sharp intellect and knowledge compensate this fault, making her interrogation and study a vital part of my mission." He straightened himself proudly, waving his antennae in glee. The red-eyed one scrutinized Jenna now.

    "Her anatomy is pretty primitive... They don't use something like Paks, do they?" He asked and Jenna clenched her fist; the cold despise and loath was so noticeable in his voice that she didn't even need to know what he'd said just now. Although it wasn't all directed at her, something else seemed to disappoint him as he glanced over to Set.

     "Why don't you translate them what  _I_  have to say to them?" She growled impulsively and sensed Set flinching next to her in terror. The violet Irk squeaked and hid behind the red one who cocked a brow in surprise.

    "Uwah, it speaks!" Purple shrieked and although they didn't know either what she said they must've had recognized the fury in her voice as well as her angry scowl. Red narrowed his eyes.

    "Yes... And above all unasked." He gave Set a stern look along with a nod whereupon the invader stiffened, snapping a spider leg from his Pak to deal the human a powerful shock that threw her to the ground. Her pained scream made the Tallest grin in amusement. "Good work, invader Set. Except for her bad manners she seems to be a promising... test-subject. Are there any further notations that would disconfirm Earth's lack of value for the Empire?" He went on as if nothing had interrupted them. Even Purple dared to show his face again now that the human was down, sneering at Jenna.

     "Oh yes, my Tallest! I will send you my report right away; I hope it will pique your interest for conquering this planet and it's earthworm inhabitants." Set bowed.

     "We'll see... Alright invader, we will send new instructions in time. Until then... try to teach this Earthworm some manners." Both of them grinned viciously and the transmission was cut.

Jenna spat out a mouthful of blood once they were gone; she had bitten her tongue at the shock, and got on her feet with visible strain. Her muscles were still quivering from the electricity.

Set snarled, full of wrath, and clenched his fists as she stood.

    "Do you even know what you were gambling with just now? What you  _risked_?!" He grabbed hold of the uniform's collar and jerked her around. She tried to free herself but he shook her. "Not only did you made me look like a fool in front of my leaders, no, above all you're endangering my reputation, my mission and my fucking  _life_!"

He cuffed her and through her back to the ground. "I hope this will be a lesson to you, otherwise I'm going to have to be more  _specific_!" He hissed and stormed off the bridge.

Jenna just lay still, completely paralyzed by the sudden outburst of rage and swallowed a cry. She didn't want to cry again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Btw, the Tallest are total d*cks in this story... 
> 
> sorry for the delay but I'm actually doing adult stuff at the moment o____o
> 
> no NOT THAT!  
> I'm earning money!
> 
> no-  
> eh... forget it


	10. Farewell

### \- 7 Farewell -

 

Jenna waited for ten minutes to pass, until she was sure that Set wasn't going to come back, and left the command bridge as well. She snuck the short distance, pressed against the wall, to the door with the blue room behind it. To her it was something like a safe place; not only because the light was ever so calming but more because she was hoping to be safe from the Irk in there for a little while.   
  
After a quick glance down the hallway she slipped past the door and raised a brow on surprise. The room had changed since she last had been in here.

The light had been dimmed so it was fairly dark. To her left a wall had parted to reveal another window, and this time she could see some pale stars in the void. The waving blue lights still swirled over the ceiling and walls, making her shadow dance. Jenna heaved a sigh of relief and walked over to the window. At the very edge she could also see a bit of the Earth.

She huddled herself into the corner right next to the glassed wall, touching her burning cheek, and stared into the dark void underneath her.

It was so strange to see the starry sky  _under_  her instead of just above. The bluely shimmering planet appeared like an island in the middle of a stormy, deadly ocean. But the silence was driving her insane; on Earth there was no place completely void of sound. There was always something: wind, rain, birds, insects, humans... Laughter. And  _music_.

Hesitating Jenna took in some air and breathed a trembling note. She cleared her throat with a frown and tried again, louder. She started to sing a lullaby her mother had often sung to her when she was having nightmares as a child. The lyrics soothed her a little even though her heart was about to break from homesickness.

She closed her eyes and repeated the few lines she remembered. To submit to her pain this wholeheartedly made her face burn from shame and the feeling of defeat. She was still thinking that she had to be strong, for her family and the sake of Earth, but just now there was a nagging doubt. Why would she, out of all people, have to be responsible for the survival of all humankind? She wasn't able to help them from up here! And she wouldn't ever be, for Set was far too strong an opponent for her.  _She_  was the one in need of help, not humankind!

Her voice cracked for a second as the first tears found their way down her cheeks and her throat closed up painfully from the rising sobs, but she kept on singing, her voice thin now.

A sound next to her made her flinch. Startled she opened her eyes again just to look at Set's face.

He was watching her with his head tilted slightly and eyes wide open. She furrowed her brows and turned away from the alien, further into the corner, quickly wiping her cheeks and went silent. Set was sitting next to her with his legs crossed and tipped his head to the other side. Finally he poked her what made her snarl:

    "What!? What the hell do you want from me now?!"

He bared his teeth in return for a second but then seemed determined to compose himself and shut his eyes in concentration. When he spoke again his voice sounded tensed but controlled.

    "What were those sounds you made? How are you doing that? It sounds... good."

She lifted her head, confused, to peek at him from behind her hair. He looked incredibly fascinated, almost wicked, yet angered by his own reaction like always when something seemed too strange to catch his attention like this.

Jenna returned his gaze surly and pondered. She was afraid he could torture her to get more sounds out of her, thus she turned towards him and raised her hands smitten; how do you explain something as natural as breathing? Didn't Irken have a concept for music? Was it something unique to Earth alone? She highly doubted that.

    "It's called singing. I... extend sounds so that my vocal cords start swinging in a specific way and produce these tunes. See, this is the normal 'a'", Set's antennae twitched attentively. Jenna cleared her throat. "Now I extend the sound and make it louder. Aahhh..." The note was a little wonky but the antennae vibrated in excitement. Immediately he wanted to try it himself but as he held the a longer than the short sound, a trilling chirr erupted from his throat. Disappointed he massaged his neck and shot Jenna an envious glare who couldn't keep a little grin.

    "Why can't I do it? I am the superior one so why are you able to produce these singing-sounds and not me?" Set wanted to know and poked her throat. Frightened she flinched back and raised her hands in defense. "Make more sounds, I command it!" He crossed his arms ever so childishly and leaned back.

Jenna tried to calm her pounding heart.

    "O- okay wait I... hm." She searched desperately for an actual song to sing. It was like trying to tell a joke when someone wants you to: suddenly you can't remember the cheesiest one-liner you might have known before. Then a song came to her mind that fit her situation in a strange way so she had to sing it:

 

_All around me are familiar faces_

_Worn out places, worn out faces_

_Bright and early for their daily races_

_Going nowhere, going nowhere_

_Their tears are filling up their glasses_

_No expression, no expression_

_Hide my head I want to drown my sorrow_

_No tomorrow, no tomorrow_

 

Why it had to be 'Mad World' out of all possible songs she didn't know, but kept singing the lyrics that were branded into her brain other than the lullaby's. She closed her eyes to concentrate on hitting the notes and only opened them after finishing the song. She ended with hesitation and slowly looked up to Set, waiting for his reaction.

The Irk's eyes were widely opened and his mouth a little as well. His antennae now lay flat on his head after having waved with the rhythm before. He breathed a little sigh, the crimson eyes shining in awe.

    "That was... sad... But it felt good... here." Dazed he touched the base of the black stalks and chirred contented. He actually looked a little star struck. Set leaned forward all of a sudden to lay down on his side, propping his head in her lap and drawing his knees up to his chest. Like a giant, green child he lay there starring at her in anticipation. "Sing more..." He growled, but not angrily, and his antennae wiggled excited.

Jenna had jerked up her arms when he had closed in on her this suddenly. But since the alien seemed to be pacified by her mediocre singing in some way right now she didn't expect an imminent attack. At least not as long as she kept singing.

At first she only hummed the first part of a pop song and sang just the first two verses plus the chorus because she couldn't remember the rest. Without her iPod or any other source of music it was kind of hard to remember the lyrics and notes correctly, especially if her only practice had been under the shower; but somehow she managed to avoid longer moments of silence between the songs.

On her lap the Irk relaxed noticeably; silent chirping sounds cooed from his chest, almost a purr, while his eyelids slowly sank down but never fully closed. He grabbed her hand to press it against his cheek, patting it demanding. She wasn't really sure what to do but as she carefully thumbed the smooth skin he continued his chirring and relaxed again.

For the first time they were at peace; a strange peace but she was grateful for it.

Jenna kept singing until her throat was dried out and she had to clear it more frequently.

    "I think I need something to drink..." She croaked with another cough and rested her back against the corner. Set sighed, shot an arm out of his Pak and slurred something into the microphone. A minute later the door opened and SIR entered, balancing a tablet on his head. Jenna snatched the toppling water bottle from it. "Thank you." She groaned relieved and emptied a third of it with two mighty gulps. Set on the other hand took the green cup with a straw in it, sucking lazily.

Curiously she bent over him to look at the pink stuff in it that reminded her of a slush, only from space. "What's that?" She asked between two more sips. Set mumbled something Irken so she just shrugged it off and turned to her water some more. Set lifted his arm and waved the cup in front of her face.

    "Want some?" He muttered; his antennae stretched and shivered shortly. She gave the cup a suspicious look.

    "You think I can drink that?" She wasn't really sure about trying space-food just now. He nodded emphatically.

    "I've analyzed you, remember? Apparently we aren't that different... except maybe for the fact that you also eat other life forms." He retched a little and shoved the cup in her face again. Jenna huffed and grabbed it from his hand which slumped back on her leg.

    "Jeez, please don't tell me my singing is so bad that it paralyzed Irken." She commented his drowsy state and took a cautious sip of the drink. It  _was_  a slush and it didn't even tasted that strange. But the amount of sugar made her clench her jaw.

    " 'M tired..." Set whined grouchily and bit her thigh through the pants what made her flinch, almost choking on the drink.

    "W-what are you  _tired_  from? You haven't done anything exhausting as far as I can tell." She sneered and took another sip, wondering if he had gone off to flip some tables after the Tallest had signed off. The stuff got even better over time and sugar was a quick energy source she couldn't deny in her current state of famine. Hello diabetes.

Set ran the tip of his tongue over her hand and smacked his lips.

    "I've sent a loooooong message to the Tallest using my Pak... yea... takes a lot of energy." He nibbled at her arm. "Hmm... salty."

Jenna blushed, suddenly remembering why she was so sweaty. Quickly she rose to her feet and Set fell to the ground with a surprised wail.

    "I- I think I should go take a shower, you know? Wash off all that blood from my arms and legs..." Her heart was racing again, already apprehending that the next assault of his wasn't far away.

The Irk was so quickly on his feet that she barely noticed the motion. His eyes were narrowed leery and his shadow fell on her as he rose to his full height to boom over her.

    "You... you're planning something, I can tell..." He came closer and took the cup from her trembling hand without letting her out of sight for a second. Her heart pounded in her chest; she was afraid that he could've guessed what had gone through her mind and probably turn the situation into a really unpleasant direction. "You're acting strange, human..." He warned her and took a slurping sip through the straw, clucking his tongue upon letting it go. "Yes, very strange."

_For fuck's sake get it together!_  She scolded herself and straightened, arms crossed.

    "No, don't! I'm not acting strange! At least... well not without a reason." - "Ahaaa!" He snared triumphing what made her roll her eyes.

    "Listen, I'm just feeling sweaty and I want to take a shower. Also I want to take a look at this." She tried to explain waving her wrist with the bandages still on. Set grabbed one, the left of course, and pulled Jenna towards him. Alert he studied her face, scratching his temple with the straw.

    "I tag along just in case you... try something... stupid." He said slowly, more to himself, and nodded. "Yeah, right, something stupid."

Jenna writhed her arm trying to get it out of his grasp and recoiled.

    "Oh no,  _no way_ ; you're not 'tagging along'!" She couldn't  _not_  air quote that. "I don't want you to watch me take a shower, give me at least some  _privacy_  now and then if nothing else!" She protested and felt a flush rising to her cheeks. He grinned viciously.

    "You know that my suspicion only grows if you refuse to cooperate?" With this knockout argument he crossed his arms loosely in front of his chest, taking a sip of victory. She glared at him for another good moment before throwing her hands up in defeat.

    "Alright, fine!  _Tag along_. You walking pain in the ass..." She hissed furiously and rushed out the door. Set followed with lazy scuffling but his legs were still way longer than hers so he had no problem at all to keep up with her angry stomping.

Jenna cursed herself all the way to the bathroom for her own stupidity. Only because she always freaked when she felt threatened.

_Oh this is just great! If he doesn't get a call from his leaders in the next 5 minutes.._.

In this moment the door to the bathroom opened and she was inside. Set kicked against a glowing panel in the wall and some sort of bench slid out of it. Slurping he sank down on that and skidded around to get into a more comfortable position. Jenna remained in the doorway, shy, insecure and two beats away from a heart attack.

But then she jerked around and pulled off the pink uniform, folding and putting it on the bench a little bit farther away from Set. She felt his gaze on her and pretended not to notice even though she already prepared herself for any sudden movements.

When stripping down the pants she turned her side to him; just don't give him more invitations than you already have. The walk to the basin was the most critical part since she had to let him out of sight for this; but even now Set didn't do anything else besides watching her and taking sips from his drink.

The liquid started floating around her as soon as she put her foot in the bowl and she snatched one of the drops to rub it over her hair, face, neck and shoulders. Reaching her arms she tucked at the bandages. The strange material was still tightly wrapped around her wrists and wouldn't budge no matter how hard she tore on it. She looked for an edge or something else to pull it off at, but wasn't able to find any.

With a heavy sigh she turned around and pointed at her wrist enforcedly.

    "Could you... help me with these? I can't get them off." She asked with hesitation in her voice that almost made it tremble, and tucked on the bandages again. With a look she couldn't get her head around Set rose from his spot and slowly stepped closer. Her heart decided to painfully skip a beat before galloping along as he took her hand in his, scratching over her palm with a sharp fingertip.

    "Are you really that weak?" He murmured but the usual sneer was lacking and he simply ripped the bandage apart with his finger. Underneath it was a completely healed wrist with no scars left at all. Only on her left wrist the Irken brand had a little split in its tip.

"Hmm but at least you heal quickly." He relented and carefully stroked her arm. Since Jenna was standing in the floating basin she almost reached up to his chin. Set lifted his gaze from her hand to look her in the eyes. When he kissed her she tensed up and pushed against his chest plate.

    "Don't..." She whispered strained, turning her head away. Set bent over her neck to gently bite the wet skin, putting a hand on her back and pulling her to his body. "Set, stop..." She tried once more, this time her voice cracked and she felt tears welling up.

To her surprise he  _did_  stop but stayed at her neck, pressing little kisses on it.

    "I thought you liked that..." He rounded in a serious tone, letting his hand run along the arch of her back. Jenna's head was a battlefield of all kinds of opposed thoughts and feelings. She felt her body reacting to the gentle touch on instinct; anticipating and excited. But her mind and her heart screamed:  _no! It's wrong, don't let him do it again, fight_!

That's why she could only stutter, avoiding his gleaming eyes.

    "... I don't know, not here... not like this, not..." She stopped as Set straightened his shoulders, taking a step back.

    "Oh, I know alright...  _not me_." He said quietly and touched her cheek, running his thumb along the way of an invisible tear. He shook his head. "I don't get it... I don't get you... you should feel honored that I spare you from all that is to come... that I share my knowledge with you, that I've chosen  _you_  out of all pathetic earthworms to serve me, to even be  _close_  to me!" He seemed downright offended. "I'm afraid you don't quite understand the situation you're in; there is no going back! You should just accept your fate already - no! You should acknowledge it and thank me for it on your knees!" He snarled the last bit and turned around to storm out of the room in pure anger.

When she was finally alone Jenna couldn't keep the tears any longer from running down her cheeks.   
  
Set was right.


	11. Farewell Pt.2

### \- Farewell -

#### Part 2

  
  
After a moment she somehow found the motivation to finish cleaning herself and stumbled out of shower, her sight still blurred from tears. She was so afraid... because of her family, her friends and what might await herself.

Wasn't it only natural to fight violence and oppression? To struggle for dear life? Would she seize to be a free mind, a human, if she were to submit to Set's reign? Wouldn't it be better to die to maybe bestow humanity a chance to survive?

But suddenly a completely new thought crossed her mind, almost striking her like a punch. Couldn't it go the other way round as well? If she was on good terms with Set, if he would accept and maybe even like her - Maybe things could turn out for the better.

She sat down on the bench to think.  _Search your feelings_  - she grinned at that -  _what do you feel when thinking about this alien?_  She counted it on her fingers without noticing.

First: she was afraid of him. He was quick with all kinds of violence and didn't hesitate to hurt her. On the other hand... she had experienced so much violence and pain in the last few days than ever before; whatever was to come in the terms of pain she was sure to be able to overcome.   
There was an inner voice that told her these things, these  _inhuman_  things. It sounded cold and calculating, a voice clearly originating from her will to survive on her own.

Second: he was the enemy and she hated him! Set was about to enslave her family and friends and all humankind or even destroy them!

Humanity would've destroyed itself sooner or later, the voice whispered, you don't need them when you're around all kinds of aliens.

That was right; third: she was fascinated by Set. The sole fact that she had been abducted by an alien life form was exciting and, actually, a dream to come true. She was somewhat honored to be the first human to ever meet a real alien, although she wasn't quite sure of that. And even if its species was planning to eviscerate her civilization, led by two sadistic giants and a swarm of cruel invaders... There was still space, literally.

Jenna's hand slumped down on her knee as she tried to imagine it all. Would Set take her to other planets? Would she see other aliens beside him? There might be hundreds if the Irken set whole armadas to conquer them; and if she'd wind up to be the last free one of her race... She would be famous.

Finally her thoughts travelled to the last point. To what had happened, and would go on if she decided to stay. Sure, the first time he had abused her and threatened to kill her parents. Classical rape. Yet...

Jenna pressed a hand against her chest, her heart was still racing. Why was it doing that lately, she wondered, shortly jolting from her muse.

The second time around she hadn't fought back for the same reason and because she didn't want to go through all that torturing again. But the tension from just now was still there, routing in her insides, making her both sick and woozy. That wasn't something you'd feel after being raped, right? It was strange, and she tried to get to the bottom of that feeling.

To have sex with an alien life form... was undeniably exciting. For an alien Set could almost be called handsome, at least to her sense. She was actually glad having been abducted by him and not some sort of gooey blob-thing. She still felt his strange kiss lingering on her lips... and his tongue coiling around hers.

With a terrible clearness a word popped up in her mind: Stockholm Syndrome.

Despite, or because of her abduction and everything Set had done to her she had developed some sort of attachment and fascination for the Irk.

For a second she got angry at herself, at her weakness and how pathetic she was for letting something like this happen, before she started to ponder again and her self-loathing was gradually superseded by her curiosity.

 _And if I just play along? What if I leave Earth behind for now? I could really get to see other planets... But it's going to be hard as hell... I'll be so homesick that it might destroy me altogether_.

But what if he helped her? What if Set were to fill the gap that her past life would leave in her heart? Would he be able to give her solace? She didn't think so; compassion wasn't a concept to the Irk, but maybe it would be enough if he just gave her warmth and closeness... to simply be there when she would cry herself to sleep.

Torn by these thoughts she stared at the black brand on her wrist.

 

* * *

 

She found him in the lab, concentrated bending over a group of Petri dishes and typing with his left hand. Her bare feet didn't make a sound on the metal floor, thus she could stop in the doorway to watch him. Set was buzzing to himself; apparently he was still trying to sing. That actually brought a little smile to her face; the Irk was really relentless once something had caught his interest.

With intentionally loud steps she approached, walking up behind him to rest her hands calmingly on his back. He was wearing plain black clothes now, his armor hidden in the Pak and although the bulky suit was gone his frame was still huge.

Set paused in his typing but didn't turn around. Jenna propped her forehead against his back, too, right under the Pak.

    "I've made up my mind... I'm going to come with you, wherever that might be." She laughed nervously, "I can't really overthrow you and I'm tired of fighting for something I can't prevent from happening. So, this is my official submission. Congratulations, you've won." She couldn't keep the bitterness from her voice.

Now he turned around, giving her a suspicious look. Jenna forced herself to raise her head so she could look him in the eyes. "But," she went on, "I'm going to need to bring some things from my home, otherwise I'll get bored. And... and you don't want me bored, believe me." She tried to seize the trembling in her voice. Set's look changed into a surprised glance. The corner of his mouth twitched.

    "Well... If you're  _that_  bored we could always..." He gave her a suggestive look and she made a face even though the timbre of his alien voice caused a stir in her guts.

    "I'm afraid that's going to get too much, even for you. No... it's just... I want to have something that reminds me of my home. Of who I really am, stuff like that... do you understand?" She asked at his blank expression. Set shook his head. Jenna sighed. He really had no idea of these things whatsoever. "I can't really live without them... so, yeah it would be nice if you'd at least let me have that... instead of privacy and what not." She looked up into his unmoved face and waited for a reaction.

Slowly he nodded.

    "Alright... I take your point. In a few hours it will be nighttime in your time zone. Then we can go get your... stuff. But if you dare to try something funny on me..." He added as a warning and she was quick to shake her head.

    "Don't worry, like I said: official submission? I won't try to run... b-but it's... going to be h-hard." The last word was choked by a loud, sudden sob and she turned away, hiding her face behind her hands. All the pain she felt and all her fear broke free after having said aloud what she had been decided ever so finally.

Set stood there, rather bewildered, and searched his Pak for an appropriate reaction to this outburst. He found none, as you already know, Irken don't  _know_  pity. But then he reached for her to draw her close to his body and carefully embrace the small frame; Jenna's crying subsided into a series of sniffles and finally died down completely though her shoulders continued to quiver. Timid she returned the hug and allowed him to pull her even closer.

    "That's strange... I don't know how to react to something like this... or if I even  _should_. But I know from your thoughts that you like this… closeness... they were  _full_ of it!" He stroked over her back and remained a little longer in this position until she'd finally caught herself again.

Silent they stood in the lab, listening to the other's breathing and Set felt her heart beating. "Are you... going to sing more when you have all your stuff?" He asked casually trying to hide his excitement, but failed miserably. She smirked and looked back up to him.

    "I guess so... you know, one of these things is something that plays music, well, singing; with this I can actually sing a lot better." She replied and mentally added her iPod to the things she wanted to bring, apart from clothes and everything else that would make life in space a lot easier.

 

* * *

 

The little cruiser hovered over the clouds without a sound before dashing through them, sinking down next to the roof of her house. Jenna's heart did a painful jump.

Set let go of the cyclic to push some buttons on the cockpit's dashboard. A 3-dimensional blue print of her house appeared on the screen before them. Three white lights flashed up; two down at the first floor, right next to each other, and the third in the upper floor. A red dot lay in the middle of the first floor.

Those were the life signals of her parents, her sister and her dog Tippet. Jenna swallowed hard to fight the uprising sadness.

    "Where is the room you need to get in to?" Set asked slightly tensed. She pointed at the empty room next to her sister's.

    "There... how exactly do you want to get me inside without waking up the whole house?" She asked in return skeptically and shifted nervously on the seat's armrest. The cruiser was too small for both of them to fit in comfortably.

The Irk grinned and pulled a lever on the left side of the keyboard. The shuttle hovered closer to her window and opened the canopy without a sound. Set extended one spider leg from his Pak. At the tip she noticed nothing strange but when he pressed it against the glass it went right through! "What  _is_  that?" She whispered perplexed and the Irk snorted contented.

    "An extremely hard material the Vort used for the blades of their ships... well, until we conquered them and took the technology for ourselves that is."

Jenna wondered why she wasn't surprised by that. "I make the tip vibrate so fast that it can cut nearly every material without resistance." He pulled the spider leg back to insert another, thinner one into the hole. The window catch was no obstacle and shortly after he pushed the window open. Before Jenna could say anything, two of his spider legs closed around her waist to carefully lift her out of the cruiser and inside the dark room.

Set scrunched his nose.

    "No way will I go in there... Who knows what might be crawling around!" He growled and squinted his eyes leery. She rolled her eyes and raised her hands in a helpless manner.

    "Then wait outside! Can you see the little patch of forest left from here?" She whispered and pointed out the window. The Irk shot a glance to his right and nodded slowly, still very tentatively. "Just wait there for me; I'm coming out once I got everything."

His expression grew even more distrustful.   
  
"Oh, don't worry, I won't try to run or alarm anybody, I promise! And don't forget, I still have  _this_." She pulled angrily at the blinking collar around her neck. Set gave another slow nod and shot her a warning glare before flying off.

She took a second to breathe in the warm summer air then started shoving things into a big camping-backpack.

Unsure of what to take she paused and looked around the room, untouched as if she hadn't been gone for days. She spotted her iPod on the couch-table and used its light to look for the rest of the things she wanted to take with her.

Her phone was still missing, she must've had lost it at the Ditch.

Two pair of earplugs followed the iPod, and she stopped again. She wanted to take everything out of this room. The sketchbook went into her backpack, a handful of random pens and pencils with it; two erasers, a photo of her family, one of her dog.

She already had to fight back the tears. Her favorite book and some comics were all that fitted inside the front lastly. Jenna opened her dresser and just crammed every piece of underwear at the bottom.

Suddenly she froze; hadn't she heard something just now? Strained she listened in but couldn't hear anything. Then it sounded again and she recognized an owlet calling for a mate. It was a weight off her mind and she continued to stuff her backpack with clothes.

Last she could squeeze between the other things were a pair of tracksuite pants, a pair of jeans and a black tank top. She had trouble closing the backpack properly. Her fingers felt around in her dresser and found the white jacket that was way too big for her but would hopefully disguise her a little on her way to the forest.

Jenna pulled the hood deep into her face and hoisted the heavy backpack that now contained her former life on Earth on her shoulder. But then she stopped again.

At the back wall of her room hang a collage that Lauren and Carly had made for her. Her throat closed up as she approached it; without having to look she tore one photo off: all of them together, sitting on the hood of Lauren's pickup, smiling, happy. She thumbed over her friend's faces before carefully putting it inside her sketchbook.

Silently but quickly she left her room, closed the door and snuck down the staircase, avoiding the loose steps with ease.

A whine. She felt the tears running down her cheeks and sank onto one knee, wrapping her arms around her dog that already waited in the living room. Of course he'd sensed her being in the house, he always did. Jenna buried her face in the soft fur. Nothing ever felt as alive as an animal with fur. It silenced her sobs and Tippet whimpered quietly, returning the embrace like dogs do: pressing his nose against her temple and waggling his tail. "I love you bud..." Jenna whispered huskily, kissing the wet nose. Almost forcefully she let him go and stood up.

A moment she stopped before the door to her parent's bedroom. She wanted so badly to go inside, just to see them for one last time to tell them how sorry she was and just how much she loved them. But she could only raise a hand to softly touch the wooden door before quietly opening the front door and slipping into the dark summer night.

Jenna took her time on the way to the forest; she sniffed, cried and desperately tried to stop the tears. The weight of the backpack on her back was soothing; it was a piece of memory, a piece of home. She could already imagine Set's comments on her distraught state and wanted to calm down first.

The wind in her back carried lots of familiar smells: mowed grass, the faint smell of a dying camp fire, Davidoff perfume... Jenna froze thunderstruck and felt her heart jump into her throat once more but this time from fear. The smell was clear, fresh and most of all: way too close!

    "Hey, who's there?" She heard a voice calling out; his voice! Jenna didn't dare to move a muscle. What else could she have done? Run? He was a running back...

"Hello?" Daniel came closer, he couldn't be far away now; three meters tops. She turned around. The white jacket had a big hood that hid her face in the dark. But he had to recognize her, just by her small frame, the brown hair peeking out of the hood. "Who are you and what are you doing outside at this hour..." He suddenly went silent, recoiled, and leaned forward, his eyes wide open.

Jenna wanted to back off as he reached out a hand but she just couldn't, clenching her fists inside the jacket's pockets and lowering her head even further.

Slowly Daniel stroked the hood back and gasped for air, a breathless cry. "J-Jenna?! Is... is it really..." He whispered throaty, unbelieving and confused. His hand quivered in midair and she lifted her head with a look that begged for forgiveness.

    "Hey Daniel..." She breathed; her voice trembling and barely understandable.

She was scared to death, was paralyzed by her fear. What would happen if Set decided to go and look for her? What would happen if Daniel started to wake the whole street?

He noticed the desperation and terror on her face - saw the way she shook in the warm air and finally spotted the flashing thing around her neck.

    "Oh god... what happened?! Who did this to you? How did you escape?" He was all questions that wouldn't stop; then he hugged her all of a sudden, pressing her against his body and kissing her wildly. He ran his fingers through her hair and cried: "I thought-  _we_  thought you were dead! And your parents... Oh god, Jenna... but- now everything's going to be alright! You're  _safe_  now! I- I just get this  _thing_  off of your neck and take you home!"

She writhed herself out of his arms and took a step back. Frightened she touched the collar as if it was going to explode just from Daniel's embrace. "Jenna?" He asked confused and she heard the worry in his voice; the pure, honest worry and sorrow and fear and  _love_.

    "I'm sorry Daniel... but I can't go back with you... if- if I try to run this collar will explode... although I doubt he'd let me off that easily. More likely he would kill everyone before my eyes first... my family, my friends... and even you." She could only whisper the last two words, she couldn't say it loudly. Daniel furrowed his brows in anger and grabbed her shoulder.

    "Jenna,  _please_ , what is going on? Tell me!" More fear in his voice, the denial that he'd have to let her go once more...

    "Daniel, I  _beg_  you: let me go, he-" - "Who?! Who is  _he_?" He shouted and shook her in despair.

    "Her lord and master you worm..."

A little, horrified scream left Jenna and she shot around, her hands pressed to her mouth.

From the shadows of the trees a giant figure emerged, stepping into the light of a lantern. "You betrayed me..." Set hissed hatefully as he approached the two humans menacingly. Daniel had gone pale and just stared at him; the alien was way taller than him and dressed in a dark, shimmering armor. The crimson eyes glowed in the moonlight like those of a monster and two long antennae whipped through the air above his head. With slow steps he came closer and closer.

Jenna pulled Daniel, a 1,80m running back almost twice her weight, behind her back and raised her other hand in an imploring gesture.

    "S-Set, no!  _No_ , I- I just wanted to say him goodbye, I  _swear_! Don't hurt him!" She shouted with cracking voice and stumbled backwards, trying to keep Daniel behind her and out of the Irken's reach.

    "Oh, I won't hurt him..." Set purred before his face turned into a rage-distorted mask and he roared: " _I'm going to destroy him_!"

    " _No_!" She screamed terrified as eight spider legs sprung from the Pak, all armed with a razor sharp tip and he lunged at Daniel.

Jenna reacted out of her mind, she pushed her boyfriend to the ground and took a step back herself, and a sharp metal spear impaled her chest, under her right shoulder.

 For a moment the sound of blood rushing in her ears was the only thing that told her she was alive, the pain was yet to come. She breathed and coughed as blood filled her lung instead of air. In a dreamlike motion she lifted a hand to grab the metal arm in an attempt to pull it out.

Set was quicker; he recoiled in shock and stared at the bloody metal limb that slipped out of her chest with a terribly wet sound. Aghast he lifted his gaze to meet hers, but there was no hate in her eyes, only a stern determination.

Daniel screamed, shouted her name about to run towards her but Jenna made a harsh gesture in his direction and he stopped in the middle of his move, as if the blood that splashed before his feet was an invisible wall.

She kept her eye contact with the Irk up; Set couldn't look away, noticing the blood from the corner of his eyes, watching it running down her body and tainting the pure white of the jacket a dirty red before dripping down to the ground where it quickly formed a puddle.

He hadn't planned to hurt her, never had  _wanted_  to! He'd wanted to kill this human male for daring to touch his property! Why did she do that if she knew that she might get hurt?

    "He... doesn't... have anything... to do with this... Set... this is between you... and... me... my fault..." She stumbled towards him, bumping against his body as her knees gave in and she held onto his armor, smearing blood all over it. "Take me... away... from here..." She panted with shallow breath, blood was spilling from her lips and she coughed as it filled her mouth. Something was wrong with her lungs! " _Please_...!" Her eyes welled up with tears again; the blood ran out of her chest in the pulses of her heartbeat... slowly but without stopping.

Somewhere a woman started to scream and that shook Set from his rigor. He looked around, remembering he was in enemy territory, and grabbed Jenna around her waist, lifting her up in his arms and using the spider legs to jump high into the air. On a silent command the Voot-Cruiser shot out from between the trees, opening its canopy underneath Set to catch them both before disappearing, faster than the eye could see.

 

* * *

 

 She regained consciousness from time to time, saw the atmospheric zone in between Earth and space, the blue shimmer the last she would see of the planet she'd known for a lifetime, and sank back into darkness. The ship's hallway... Set's face, darkness.

When Jenna was completely torn from her unconsciousness she screamed at the pain rushing her and tossed and turned to escape it. Set gave a startled sound, pressing her roughly back to the metal table. As he touched her arm to move it up she almost blacked out again but a merciless force kept her from losing consciousness again.

    "Set..." She gasped through gritted teeth and felt the burning in her shoulder too clear. When he'd hit her she had been too shocked to feel any pain at all. But know the severe wound made itself felt all the more. Her breath was so faint that it was a high whistling, every intake set her chest ablaze, and every heartbeat sent another sharp sting through her shoulder.

She had been impaled! That's right, the spider leg went right through her chest... she'd been coughing up blood! "M-my lung! It's- it's  _breached_! You gotta..." She hissed panicking, imagining how the delicate tissue of her vital organs was about to lose its functionality with every second that passed; her thoughts were oddly clear under the sea of flames devouring her body.

The alien appeared again above her, a big syringe in his hand filled with a reddish liquid. His other hand he rested on her forehead and the coolness of his skin suppressed the flames for a second.

    "I know; I already treated it." He pointed at her chest and just now she noticed the cable that grew out of it, slowly pumping something into her lung.

    "Wh- what is that?" She managed to ask, not even trying to hide her fear. Set gently thumbed her forehead.

    "Don't worry, it's good for you. I tested it on your cells, so it will work; the cut I made to reach your breathing organ isn't big but try not to move around too much... I still need to treat the gash in your shoulder, though." He calmed her and pressed the syringe against her arm. With a hissing sound the liquid was shot into her flesh and she groaned at the additional pain.

    "I... I have lost a lot of blood... I don't know..."  _If I'll make it_ , she wanted to add but the Irk pressed a finger on her lips.

    "Stupid human, I'm already synthesizing it but you have to stop talking now! The painkillers won't work as effectively as they would on me ... Just try to bear with it." He said with a strangely tensed voice and pulled a tool from the rack on the ceiling. "Foolish human… why did you do that, huh?" He hissed. Jenna wanted to explain herself but Set simply grabbed her arm and the flashing pain silenced her.

The tool came closer and she started to tremble despite the pain the movement caused; it looked like a giant stapler. The alien shot two spider legs from his Pak that pinned her down, to stabilize and to keep her from bucking or flinching most likely. Jenna shut her eyes as the torture device closed in on the burning spot that was her right shoulder. When the first clamp sank into her skin, closing the edges of the wound, she cried out in agony and the world finally went dark again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay~ I was sick the last couple of days and still feel really shitty... not as bad as Jenna will, though!  
> Damnit Set, this is why we can't have anything nice!


	12. Prerk

### \- 8 Prerk -

_3 hours later - Spaceship Medbay - Unknown course_

 

What woke her was music.

_"I, I follow... I follow you, deep sea baby... I follow you."_

'I follow rivers' by Triggerfinger. Jenna opened her eyes, trying to fight off the drowsy feeling the painkillers had left and that was about to pull her back to sleep. When she turned her head towards the sound her shoulder woke up as well and immediately started to ache. She had to grit her teeth at the pain, although it was nothing compared to the firestorm that had knocked her out. More carefully she propped herself on her elbows, the left mostly, and slowly sat up.

It took her a second to realize she wasn't in her blue room but one she hadn't been in before.

Yes, she had; the sterile white combined with flashy pink had surrounded Set's head when he was treating her before. Taking a wild guess she assumed that this had to be the MedBay or some sort of first-aid room.

Apparently Set was playing the music over the ship's speakers because it also sounded from outside the room. Jenna looked around, rather curious, she had to admit; alien medicine was quite interesting when you're not the one currently under the knife. When she turned her head the other way her gaze fell upon a tray with another bottle of water on it and a sandwich. Her hunger returned with full force, her belly cramped just from looking at it.

    "Food!" She moaned, reaching greedily for it. For a second she forgot the music and the pain as she devoured the sandwich in two, three bites. After that she almost emptied the bottle, gasping and already exhausted. "Shit... I gotta eat more or else I'm not going to survive for long..." A burp followed her sigh. But her hunger had only gotten worse from the bit of food. She needed more.   
  
Little by little she slid off the table until her bare feet touched the floor.

 Jenna looked down her body; Set had removed all her clothes again and the only thing covering her now was a big dressing around her chest and right shoulder and - surprisingly enough - another one around her hips and legs that looked like a diaper. She shrugged; at least she wasn't butt naked for a change.

On a table next to the door she spotted the white Jacket she had worn, completely cleaned and the hole where the spider leg had impaled her was patched. Shuddering at the thought she put the jacket on, pulling the zipper all the way up to her chin since she was kind of freezing now... and because of Set.

With the nearly empty water bottle tucked under her arm she left the room, making her way to the command bridge. She couldn't really move her right arm without hissing from the pain.

When the door to the command bridge opened she noticed SIR, sitting on the back rest of Set's seat dangling his legs around, and a big foot peeking out from behind the chair, bobbing to the music. A silent chirring could be heard; he was  _still_  trying to sing.   
  
She waited for the chorus to hit, whistling along to it and approaching the alien. Set went silent in an instant, watching her wide eyed as she took the iPod from the console where it was connected to an awful lot of cables jammed into the port. Quickly she switched to another song, calmly returning his gaze.

At the slow, dark tune he furrowed his brows but when the first note was actually sung his eyes grew even bigger and a small, surprised sound slipped his lips.

    "You sang that..." He muttered perplexed and his antennae already started swaying to the slow rhythm. It was 'Mad World'; his lips moved voiceless with the text. Jenna cocked a brow in curiosity.

    "Do you understand what he's singing about?" She asked. Set nodded before freezing for a second.

    "He's complaining about his life and how pathetic he is."

With a disappointed sigh she changed the song again; obviously the Irk really didn't understand what Gary Jules was singing about.

He scoffed:

    "Foolish humans... which brings me to my point." Set added lowly and his eyes narrowed. "Why did you do it?" His voice was surprisingly sharp; she wondered for a second whether he was talking about her  _talking_  to Daniel or her pushing him aside to get stabbed herself. She decided to go with the second.

    "I… couldn't let you hurt him..." She mumbled, fidgeting around with her iPod. Set's scowl grew deeper.

    "But why?! Why would you risk getting killed in his stead?"

Angrily she shrugged and yelped at the sudden pain.

    " _Because_ , for fuck's sake! It's something… human, you wouldn't understand it even if I'll explain it to you in every little detail; it's something you have to know by heart, okay?" She took a shaking breath and clutched the iPod tighter as if it could encourage her. Instead of 'Mad World' now played a song by 'Daughter' - Medicine - and the melancholic voice made everything worse. "I love Daniel, he means the world to me and I worry about him and I  _miss_  him!"

She didn't care for his glare that grew darker and darker. "If you'd as much as laid a finger on him I wouldn't have possibly been able to go with you anymore. You didn't need to attack him, he wasn't even armed! You could've just grabbed me and left! You're so much taller and stronger yet you  _had_  to attack him?!" She was shouting now and her shoulder throbbed painfully.   
  
Set blinked confused before his malicious look returned and he merely growled:

    "You are mine.", baring his teeth. "Whoever dares to touch you will be punished, easy as that." - "Oh, is it  _really_  just that easy, yeah?" She groaned back, letting her hands slump down.

Suddenly Set stood up and crossed the distance between them with one step. Jenna didn't flinch. One hand grabbed her chin, forcing her to look at him.

    "I don't get what you want to hear from me... I thought you'd know by now  _how_  I am." He hissed while studying her thoughtfully, trying to find on her face what he couldn't understand.

Jenna returned his stare tired.

    "That doesn't mean at all that I am okay with you killing a friend of mine right before my eyes.” She replied quietly and looked into his crimson eyes that narrowed once more.

    “A  _friend…_ ” he echoed with a hiss. When she recoiled he laughed scornfully. “Oh, don’t play coy; I know just what kind of friend he was to you… So tell me: did you do it?” His voice was lowering and challenging at the same time. At first Jenna turned pale, then red, and wanted to turn her head away but his fingers dug into her jaw. His eyes were blazing with… jealousy? Was the alien actually able to be _jealous_?

She’d have wanted to shake her head despite the firm grasp.

    “No… he just recognized me on the street. If you hadn’t abducted me that night… maybe we would have, yeah.” Was it wise to tease him like that? “Well, he kissed me, I admit… and hadn’t I been so afraid I would’ve kissed him back.” She added, already expecting him to snap. But the hand under her chin loosened, thumbing down her neck and resting on the metal collar.

    “You can’t seriously want him… he is so much weaker than me… than you even.” The Irk mumbled in denial. The hand moved farther down, now stroking over the length of her nape, running fingers through her hair. “I have seen the fear in his eyes; he was paralyzed by it. But you… you don’t fear me anymore…” a short smile played around the corner of his lips.   
  
Hesitating, slowly, he bent down, kissing her when she didn’t recoil. To calm the wrought-up alien she raised herself on tip-toes and gently palmed the black antennae back over his head. Set shuddered, flopped back into the seat and crossed his arms in front of his chest, dealing her another angry glare.

He was pouting.

Jenna tilted her head, amused, before noticing the grin on his face. She paled again and raised her hands in defense.

   “No! No, don’t even  _think_ about it! Don’t you da- Set! No, m- my shoulder still hurts pretty badly and- and I’m not feeling well, I… I  _can’t_.”

SIR, the little wretch, pushed her from behind and she did an involuntary step forward. The alien grabbed her wrists, pulling her towards the seat. “No…” her will to fight the sheer force was weak since she didn’t have the power to struggle without inflicting more pain on herself.

    “I cannot tolerate you wanting someone else…  _I_ am your master.” He growled and leaned forward to bite her neck. Jenna reclined but Set wrapped his arms around her and pulled her closer until she had to prop one knee on the seat. Chirping contentedly he kissed her, parting her lips with his tongue which immediately coiled around hers and sucked it into his mouth.

  It seemed like the Irk had two personalities; one that he presented the outside world: the mighty, cruel conqueror. And then there was one that only surfaced when he wanted her. This side was less cruel, almost tender. But sadly it would vanish once he was thinking about something else than sex.

Jenna pushed against his chest as he extended the kiss harrowingly, squeezing her throat shut. When Set didn’t react but only kissed her harder she punched desperately against his shoulder.  _Tender my ass!_

Finally, when she already feared he would make her lose consciousness, he pulled away from her, licking his lips while she clutched at his shirt, trying to catch her breath. Her knees gave in and Set caught her, placing her comfortably on his lap.

    “Set, please… stop it.” she begged, slumped against his chest and still too breathless to do anything else besides pleading. “I guarantee you that it won’t be as satisfying as you may think; and on top of that I’m going to be pissed for a really long time.”

He had stopped caressing her and looked like he was actually listening. Jenna took heart from that. “I swear I’m going to make it up to you; but  _please:_  let me at least heal for a little while and get back on my feet, okay?” her voice was a purr, soft and innocent and she could tell from the way his antennae quivered that the Irk was listening  _very_ carefully.

But before she could even enjoy her performance his eyes darkened again.

    “You’re going to stall me, right? You promise me all this but you’re not planning on keeping it.” he stroked over her hips, lifting the rim of the bandages around them with two fingers. “I don’t think I’ll take this risk.”

She felt his thumbs slipping under the strapping that covered her crotch, flinching at the vague tease. Set leaned in to kiss her again, sliding one hand past the barrier to thumb over her groin. Jenna tried to move away from the touch and was stopped by his free hand that pressed against her back to keep her in place.

    “I- I wouldn’t dare to trick you! You remember what happened the last time I tried that?” she actually managed to laugh at that. He stopped again, resting his head at the crook of her neck, pondering over what she said. The hand had stopped moving. She felt the baring of teeth against the delicate skin of her throat and had to concentrate to not recoil.

Suddenly he flung back with an annoyed groan and let his arms fall on her thighs. For a second he looked really tired but then he turned his head away, staring at a point in the room.

    “Why are you  _still_  so damn stubborn?!” he grunted with enough bafflement in his voice to make her smile. Sighing he closed his eyes. Jenna hesitated at first...

When Set felt her leaning against him he opened his eyes a tiny bit. There she was, resting her head on his chest right under his chin, her arms wrapped around his middle. Confused he cocked a brow. What was it with this human and her weird desire for closeness while at the same time declining his own? He snarled, about to shove her off his lap, when she started humming to the music that was still playing. The soft vibrations against his chest made him freeze.

    “This isn’t so bad, though. Just sitting here and not trying to hurt each other.” She mumbled in between two songs, nestling closer to his body. As a matter of fact she was right, although he’d never say that out loud, especially not to her; instead he just chuntered while returning the embrace. He felt his mind calming down, losing the appetite to do with her as he pleased… it was cozy.

Suddenly she grimaced and pushed back at arm’s length. “Set?” her question sounded pained; he tilted his head and raised an antenna. “I- I’m so hungry I’m afraid I might pass out or something…”

 

* * *

 

 Before Set walked down into the base of the ship he treated the wound on her shoulder with a new bandage that comfortably numbed the area around the metal clamps stuck in her flesh. While she waited for something to eat she searched through her iPod, creating new playlists to pass the time. 

  
SIR appeared again to stalk around her. With a leap he jumped onto the console, staring at her with his single lens which turned and focused. His mouth opened and closed as if he was cackling.

    “ _Eeeeaaarthhhhwoooorm…_ ”, he croaked with a dubstep-worthy voice. Jenna flinched surprised; this was the first time the robot actually talked to her. All of a sudden he snapped a metal arm from his head, wielding a weapon of some sort, leveling it at her.

She narrowed her eyes and struck at the weird arm. SIR hadn’t expected an attack: with a shrill, shocked sound he fell off the console and hit the ground with a loud clank.

Set returned, looking around quite confused.

     “What’s going on here?” he wanted to know. Jenna drew her knees to her chest, wrapping her arms around them protectively.

    “SIR tried to threaten me… so I slapped him!” she replied defiantly, not letting the robot out of sight as he got up on his feet. He cussed something in Irken that made her flare. “What did he say?!”

Set had started giggling. When he noticed her furious glare he cleared his throat and just shrugged. She growled, sinking deeper into the seat. The Irk tossed her a new pair of pants and a uniform. Last he passed her something that looked like a bag of chips. “What’s that?” she asked curiously and carefully opened the bag from which rose an exotic smell. Set answered in Irken, thought again and trawled her language for something analog.

    “Hm… I believe you call this form of food ‘chips’. It’s a special invader-snack with a high amount of nutrients.”

Jenna eyed the content. The stuff really looked like potato chips, only a little paler. Since she already felt nauseous from hunger she took one and cautiously nibbled at it. She almost shuddered at the first taste; it was both salty and sweet, like chips powdered in sugar. But the energy she would gain from it was undeniable so she kept eating, watching Set walking around on the bridge studying something like a stellar map. Just now she realized that she couldn’t spot the sun anymore.

The cosmic space in front of them had greatly changed altogether. And it was moving.

    “Hey, why are we moving?” she asked surprised and felt a sting of fear inside her guts. Quickly she put on the new clothes. The wound on her shoulder itched. Set solely shot her a glance, and pointed at the map, as if she could make something of it.

   “Our little incident could’ve gotten me into trouble if we’d stayed in earth’s orbit any longer so I deemed it better to close my research for now and return to my Tallest for my report… oh, and to introduce you to them.”

She flinched hard at his comment. On her first introduction Set’s leaders had ordered him to punish her because she had spoken unbidden. To meet them in person didn’t exactly fill her with joy.

His antennae jerked; apparently he’d heard something and turned around. Asking he tilted his head to the side. “Are you alright? You’re pale… you should eat more.” That actually sounded worried. Jenna crossed her arms.

   “I... I am afraid of them…” she mumbled and looked away. He stepped in front of her, taking her face into his big hands.

    “Don’t worry, they won’t harm you… they’ll probably be so grossed out by you that they keep at least a 1000 sik distance.”

Now she had to grin.

   “Great…”

Set looked at the map again.

    “It’s going to take some time to get there since I let the ship fly a detour to shake possible enemies but once we’re there it’s going to be a lot less stressful.”

She sat up.

    “Enemies? What kind of enemies do  _you_  actually fear? If it’s humans, don’t worry, we can’t even go to our neighbor planets.”

He rolled his eyes.

    “As if I fear your kind… no, there are far greater threats out in space, especially around these parts in the outer galaxies. Entities trying to oppose the Irken Empire… especially filthy creatures with no intelligence whatsoever.”

Jenna put another hand full of chips in her mouth. She felt dizzy and drugged again; the new bandage seemed to have more painkillers in it than those she had worn around her wrists. She started moving to the music, bobbing her head and swaying slightly. When she didn’t feel any pain she moved more. Set stared at her, even his antennae had stopped moving.

    “What… what are you doing? It’s somehow fitting the rhythm…” he seemed tempted to follow suit but left it at wiggling his antennae. Jenna looked up and caught herself dancing.

    “Oh, well… I’m dancing.”

    “Dancing?” The Irk eyed her scrutinizing. He had noticed before that the bandage’s painkillers worked a little too well on her and was accordingly alert.

    “Yeah, wait a second.” She stood up and changed the music again. A club song boomed out of the ship’s speakers and she already started moving with the beat. “It’s this desire to move, to be one with the sound.” Jenna remembered her last night on earth and how she danced. “Back on earth I used to do this almost every day… and night. Being around other people, drinking, dancing, having a good time…” she was a little stiff but her body remembered the patterns, the way she used to move her hips and arms. “I swear to god, if there’s a space club somewhere and you don’t take me there I’m gonna be so angry.” She laughed and turned around to him.

The Irk looked unsure for the first time. His eyes flew from her to the door and back and she chuckled. “What, are you scared?” she taunted him, getting an angry glare back.

    “No.” he hissed although it sounded a bit too aggressive. The human grinned.

    “You can’t dance, can you?”, an even louder hiss. “You know, I could teach you.”

He stormed over to her and Jenna shrieked, running behind the seat. “Okay, I’m sorry! Sorry, sorry, sorry!” He caught her easily, lifting her up in his arms to hiss her right in the face with bared teeth. “Please don’t tell me you get aggressive from club music.” She whispered but was met with a thoughtful glance.

    “No… but stop being so feisty.” He listened to the music, his antennae whipping. “It sounds… good. Different from the other music but…”

She looked up to him with wide eyes, waiting for an answer. “My blood is pulsing, I feel restless, I…” his eyes glowed. “I want to kiss you.” He managed to mutter, already bending down for her. Jenna met him halfway, relieved that the tricky situation hadn’t escalated for once. Set traced the contours of her face with his lips until he reached her ear, gently nibbling the lobe. “You are mine.” He breathed into her ear, now more confident.

She sighed quietly and realized that probably he was right; after all she had submitted to him and promised to come with him.

    “Yeah, I guess so.” She mumbled back, quickly stroking over his antennae to prevent any grudge from coming up. Set smiled against her cheek and let her down on her feet.

    “I’m tired… let’s go get some sleep, SIR will wake me once we’re there.” He simply said and the fact that he didn’t drag her along or ordered her to walk behind him made it obvious to her just how worn out the Irk was from the past events himself. Jenna followed him down the hallway but stopped in front of the bathroom.

    “I’m just going to take a shower real quick, just give me a minute.” She said, already expecting him to come up with weird conspiracies but Set just nodded and stepped into the elevator. Now she actually felt a sting of guilt. How long had he been up now because of her? She didn’t take long with the shower and entered the bedroom with damp hair.

Set lay on his back, arms crossed behind his head on the giant round bed. The crimson light and the stars illuminated his naked body; she approached the bed with silent steps but he woke up anyway, promptly spotting her and reaching out for her demandingly, making ‘grabby hands’. Obedient she sank down into his embrace, immediately being drawn close towards his body. The alien emitted a purring chirp and buried his face in her wet hair. While she gently brushed over his head she watched the passing stars through the window. The moment had something so serene to it that she lost the sorrow of her sacrifice for the time being.

As his eyes started closing Set nudged her with his head, muttering something.

   “Hm?” Jenna sounded and turned towards him.

    “Sing ‘Mad World’ to me…” he chirred sleepily, nibbling at her shoulder and slipping his hands under the top she had put on to get more of her warmth. She smiled and softly sang to herself. After the first verse he was already fast asleep but she kept singing, singing herself tired before she cuddled against him and closed her eyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "But why?" I couldn't stop laughing when I read it and immediately thought of SynHD xDD
> 
> somebody make me a giant Set-body pillow :C
> 
> Next chapter will have lotsa action!
> 
> A little heads-up... "prerk" is Irken for 'jumping'...  
> send me ideas of what might happen, whoever is right gets a free sketch!
> 
> http://the-true-mek.deviantart.com/


	13. Prerk - Pt. 2

### \- 8 Prerk -

#### Part 2

 

_2 hours later – Spaceship – Master Bedroom_

 

The violent burst of a massive explosion brutally shook Jenna from her sleep. The vibration threw her out of the bed, her head collided painfully with the floor and she was wide awake in an instant.

   “Set!?” she screamed startled upon casting her eyes open. From her left she heard an outraged hiss and then Set’s livid shout.

   “What the hell is the meaning of this?!” he roared and was immediately on his feet. Spider legs shot from his Pak, vaulting him towards the elevator and he jumped down the lift shaft without hesitation. As Jenna tried to get back up she could already hear the shrieking sound of metal on metal when something hit the ship again and she was struck down by the tremor of another collision. “Shit! SIR, defensive-mode!” Set shouted from downstairs.

Jenna pulled herself up at the bed, she didn’t notice that her pin stitched wound had burst open again; fresh blood drenched the bandage within seconds, wetting the rim of her black top. She didn’t even think about putting on some pants over her slip, didn’t bother with it.

Her fist slammed on the panel next to the elevator. It seemed to take hours to get up there; then she was inside, punching the control panel again. Precious seconds passed once more in which she had enough time to ask herself what the hell she was thinking she was going to do, before the elevator stopped on the command level and the door opened.

She was quickly caught in dense smoke and instinctively crouched down while pulling her top up to cover her nose and mouth. Somewhere down the hallway she heard Set yelling, followed by a shrill hissing that didn’t belong to him and distinct noises of a fight! She ran towards the hangar; the door had been blasted open and the clamor got louder. When she stopped at the door to shoot a glance into the hall she almost got fried by a stray laser shot. Jenna flinched back and pressed against the hallway wall. Suddenly an anguished howl sounded, and a giant insect-like creature came flying out of the hangar only to collide with the opposing wall of the hallway. It was bleeding out of countless wounds; black it spread in splatters on the stainless wall while the alien fell to the ground and stopped moving all along after a series of spasms.

    “Ha! That’s all you got in store, you filthy Prerk?!” Set jeered and got to hear a furious snarl out of a dozen throats.

Jenna stared at the creature. It looked like a giant grasshopper, running on its hind legs, using its other pairs of legs as arms, wearing a helmet made of chitin. Two long, thin wings protruded its back that ended into the abdomen of an ant. Out of the chitin helmet grew thin, hair-like spikes. She risked another look inside the hall.

Set had been surrounded by at least twenty of the beasts. SIR stood back-to-back with him, fending off some of the attackers with his metal whiplash that was apparently spiked with nasty barbed hooks since many of the aliens carried deep cuts that bled heavily like those of their dead companion. Set had put on his armor, his antennae were pressed on his head and his teeth were bared into a vicious snarl. In his hands he held a big weapon uncannily resembling a shotgun.

The Prerk were really jumping around him like grasshoppers; their mandibles moved agitated and they chattered in a clicking, buzzing language with each other as if they tried to coordinate their attacks. They were wielding long, spiky lances in their claws what appeared strangely stunted towards Jenna. Then she noticed the massive, gaping hole in the side of the ship through which she could see the entrance of another spaceship. More smaller Prerk were standing at the hole, cheering their fighters with clenched fists. The Irken ship had built a barrier in form of an energy field around the opening to prevent the oxygen supply from collapsing and –more importantly – everything from being sucked out into the void.

Jenna cowered again as another shot went off. She didn’t want to break Set's concentration and she wouldn’t make a difference against these enemies anyway. He seemed to be doing better than the Prerk; his spider legs lashed out, piercing three of his opponents at once, lifting them up in the air and hurling them at the bystanding aliens that tried to quickly jump out of the line as he already opened fire. “I’ll teach you not to attack an Irken ship! Didn’t learn much from your last visit, did you?” his cawing laughter was void of any mercy or pity; it was pure hatred and scorn. SIR finished off another Prerk with the clinical precision of a robot and his eye glowed red.

Her heart did a jump; Set would make it!

But suddenly one of the Prerk jumped high up in the air, clung to the ceiling and quickly scrambled over the tubes and cables. Set threw his head back and fired in its direction. The Prerk was hit and fell down on the Irk. Set used his spider legs to block the dead body and in this second all hell broke loose inside the hangar: The aliens started jumping around wildly; their strong legs vaulted them across the room, up and down and into every direction. One grabbed SIR and tossed him towards the hole while the robot managed to sever the Prerk’s arm in the process before he got lost in the mass of smaller aliens waiting eagerly at the ship’s entrance to dismember him.

Set wheeled around fuming with rage and shot into the sickening chaos of jumping Prerk, and the first one attacked, stabbing at his unprotected neck with a hefty knife. Perplexed the Irk lifted a hand to the gaping wound as the next one came running to sink his blade into the back of his hand.

Now he screamed in pain and Jenna bolted from her cover. The Prerk wrestled him down, grabbing the spider legs and chopping them off brutally! They wrenched the weapon from his hands and grabbed hold of his arms to press them to the ground. The rest started pommeling him, cutting his face, every piece of skin not protected by the armor and even tried to thrust their knives into his Pak.

Jenna saw the crimson blood pour and screamed in terror.

“ _SET_!”

Her voice shrilled through the hall and the Prerk froze. Two dozen ugly mugs turned towards the human, then one hissed startled and recoiled when he spotted the strange creature running at them. “Get off! Let go of him!” she shouted even louder, her throat raw from the smoke coiling from the burning edges of the hole. Before she was close enough one of the aliens jumped over the lifeless Irk and hissed at her loudly, spitting saliva and flaring its mandibles. Jenna ignored the threatening gesture, roared back herself and kicked at its head. Since the brute was only a few centimeter taller than her she struck it right in the face. It bounced back and stumbled over another Prerk. Agitated they chattered helter-skelter and backed off from the weird, furious being.

Jenna panted as she noticed the free space around Set and went for it but something dashed into her, sending her to the ground. When she lifted her head a giant Prerk towered over her, slavering and growling wrathfully; a rumbling thunder in the hall. His cornificated wings trembled on his back and from his bent abdomen shot a sting dripping green venom. Jenna flinched back and raised her hands to her face when he grabbed her by the collar to pick her up like a toy.

The monstrous Prerk sniffed her and let this mandibles snap menacingly in front of her face. He reeked repulsively and she felt wet, sticky saliva on her cheek as he hissed at her. Set gave a groan and the smaller Prerk squeaked scared. The big hopper boomed something in their tongue and pointed two claws at their ship. She recognized this gesture from human militaries: “Go, get back.”

The creatures obeyed immediately, grabbed Set by his arms and legs and dragged him to the opening. The big one let her down almost carefully while still staring at her in a warning manner. Then he returned to his ship as well. Jenna gasped shocked, jumped to her feet and helplessly clenched her fists while the smaller Prerk brought up the rear, not letting her out of sight as the spaceship already started moving. When she feared she wouldn’t get a chance to follow Set a shimmering piece of metal suddenly went for the guards, engaging them in a fight.

Jenna didn’t think; she sprinted towards the breach, jumped off the edge –

and floated through the void.

It was only a short moment, a split second, in which her heart froze from terror – or was it the deadly vacuum? – before her momentum carried her through the energy field of the Prerk-ship and she pitched into the interior, accelerated by the sudden gravity. The two aliens paid her no attention; with all they got they were trying to stop the manic killer-robot that gave her a sign with a blue flash of his eye, to get the hell away from here and hide, before lunging at the aliens' throats again.

She did as he told her and didn’t look back once.

The Prerk did not seem to be friends of lightning or air conditioning; it was dark, moldy, warm and damp inside the spaceship. While the Irken ship had been cold and sterile it was at least bright and clean in comparison to this hellhole.

She ran in the direction SIR had looked at and had trouble to keep her balance on the slimy, greasy floor that was coated in blood and other, undefinable sludge. The sullage gushed between her toes and if she hadn’t been so pumped with adrenaline the feeling would’ve given her shivers of revulsion. But she kept running and didn’t care for the mud splashing into her face, her hair, soon covering her naked legs from the thighs down. She ran until the dark, narrow tunnel opened into a giant cave-like hall.

For a moment she stood at the entrance and tried to overlook the situation but then she heard voices behind her and fled into the only direction possible: into the pit. She snuck along the wall and swiftly disappeared in a hole in the wall that was dug into the ground. Jenna pressed against the wall and heard the blood rushing inside her ears, only drowned by her panting breath. So loud, way too loud! They would hear…

But the Prerk walking by didn’t take one look at the hole but rushed down the slope at the edge of the hall into the center. She risked a look over the rim of her hideout and almost gasped out loudly.

Set had been brought to his knees in the middle of the pit, his arms bound to his back. Next to him stood the giant Prerk, pressing a coarse sword to his throat. The rest of the Prerk had gathered in front of the two.

The leader – she had no doubt that the big guy was the top dog of this bunch – roared something in their language and punched the air with a fist. The rest intoned a guttural chant and followed suit. Set was covered in blood, one of his antennae was flexed and he pressed it protectively against his head. His eyes, although one badly swollen, were gleaming with hatred and shame.

The Prerk followed the same pattern for a while: Giant hopper roars something, the rest chants full-throated, repeat.

After a few minutes, that felt like hours to her, they seemed to have had enough. Giant grabbed Set’s bound arms, dragging him away. From his Pak twitched the rest of the torn off spider legs and the sight made Jenna tremble. He was in pretty bad shape. The Prerk started to jump around boisterously, passing around dark bottles from which everyone greedily took big gulps until another Prerk snatched the bottle with a furious hiss.

Jenna blinked in surprise as realization hit her: A drinking bout. Perfect.   
  
Only seconds later giant mingled with them, letting himself get praised and celebrated for capturing the invader. That could only mean that Set’s prison was inside the dark tunnel in the back. A plan started to hatch in Jenna’s brain but her patience was put to the test as she observed the binge. Out of pure angst she started to involuntarily scratch at her wound, caught herself doing it and chewed off her fingernails to the nail bed, not noticing the gross dirt that stuck under her fingers; her eyes were fixed on the Prerk. She didn’t even care for someone to see her but she was so covered in mud that barely any skin was visible anyway.

Finally the Prerk succumbed to their swill. One after the other they sank down onto the slimy floor where they stood and twitched before the shining eyes went dark and a loud whistling and snoring sounded.

    “Alright… they’re sleeping…” Jenna mumbled and carefully climbed out of her hidey-hole. Without making a sound on the wet floor she skulked alongside the wall bit by bit, always keeping an eye on the knocked-out Prerk, mainly the giant. She also shot a glance towards the tunnel to see if someone would come out of it. Luckily the wall wasn’t even but nerved with countless holes and little tunnels that would have made a second hiding possible.

But it didn’t get down to that; Jenna reached the corridor without any incident and slipped through the entrance. In here it was even darker and possibly grosser but she noticed faint lights in the distance in three meter intervals. Prison cells. The floor was even filthier here and the stench of death hang unmistakably in the damp air.

She kept going and peeked through the bars of the first cell. Negative. But in the one next to it she was lucky: Faintly illuminated she spotted his legs, still inside the armor. With a silent, desperate sound she was at him and squeezed her arm through the dirty bars. “Set!” she whispered huskily and fought back the urge to scream at him. The Irk leaned against the wall, blood was still dripping from his chin onto his chest. His shiny armor was completely scratched up and stained with the slime and blood of the Prerk.

“Set, please!” she tried again and shook his leg. He growled and his head jerked up; he wanted to yell but froze upon recognizing her. His eyes widened, the left at least; the right was so swollen and blood crusted that she could barely make it out.

Set stared at her: Her face was smeared with dirt and slime and her hair clotty from the filth. She was so dark from it that she was hard to spot in the darkness. But she was really there.

He suddenly felt a great weight fall from him, a new and strange feeling. He was glad to see her.

    “Jenna…” he breathed and skidded closer to her, flinching at the pain.  _Weakling._  “How did you get here?! Where are the Prerk?” when he was close enough she caught his face in her hands and examined him for the severity of his injuries. Frantically panting she released him and looked around.

    “Drunk… I have to get you out of there! How do I open this damn cell?” she jounced at the bars until Set silenced her with a hiss.

    “There’s a lever at the door. You have to find the right one. The Prerk are pretty backward despite their space travel… never quite understood why…” he muttered, pointing towards the tunnel entrance.

    “Well, maybe they’re just into retro…” she replied humorless with a lopsided sneer and carefully stood up. At the door she shot a glance at the passed out. No change.

As quiet as she managed to she grabbed one of the levers, hoping it to be the one to open the cell, and pulled it down. The gate didn’t move. “Shit…” she hissed and grabbed two other levers. Now the gate trembled and lifted crunching. Set dropped to his belly and crawled over the oozy floor until he was through the gap. Jenna let the gat drop down and tumbled to him to hug him stormily. “Fuck, Set I was so scared!” she cried silently and covered his muddy face with kisses. Then she tried to free his arms, what was ridiculously easy since it was a mere rope, tied together.

Once free he wrapped his arms around her and bent her neck back to bow over her.

    “I swear… if we make it out of here alive I’m gonna please you so well you won’t ever forget it!” he growled throatily and bit her neck. Jenna squealed with a start and jumped to her feet.

    “Huh, then let’s make sure you keep your promise.” She whispered back and took another look at the entrance. When she heard Set groan she shot around and caught him in time before he could fall over. Blood was running down his face in broad streams, his neck and his hands. Apparently the Prerk had cut every piece of skin they could reach once they’d realized they couldn’t sever the Pak from him or his armor.

The Irk staggered, Jenna groaned as she tried to support his weight, her knees trembling dangerously. “How... how are we supposed to get out of here? I figure we’d have to reach the control room…” she sputtered strained when Set suddenly growled and a high hiss came back from the entrance.

Five little Prerk stood inside the tunnel and began to hiss their lungs out. Their battle cries wakened more and unfortunately they seemed to be getting up quicker and more sober than humans. Jenna yelled angrily and frustrated and pushed Set behind her like she had Daniel. “Buzz off you shitheads!” she screamed and grabbed a bar that had broken off of a gate. Set held his right arm that was dangling from his shoulder in an unnatural angle, it had probably been dislocated, and bared his teeth at them.

The Prerk jumped around excited, vaulting over each other and crawled up the walls but kept their distance to the pointy pole Jenna jabbed at them every time they came to close.

Suddenly a particularly bold Prerk darted forward, making a grab for her with its claw. She screamed alarmed and tried to fend it off but it was too close for the pole to be effective against it. The claws sunk deep into her forearm and tore the skin open down to the back of her hand so that she was forced to hold the pole with only one hand now, pressing the bleeding arm to her chest.

The Prerk shrieked triumphing, putting the blood smeared claw between its mandibles, its bug eyes glared at her in scorn. Then, all of a sudden, the expression changed drastically. At first it was surprise - a flash in the eyes - then disbelieve - it stared at the claw and put it back into its mouth – and then it chirped delighted, jumping around on one spot while stretching out the claw to its companions and pointing at Jenna with two other arms.

When Set shot forward to grab the Prerk it jumped back to the group and everyone sniffed its blood smeared claw.

    “Shit…” Set hissed and drew her closer to him. Jenna bit her lip to keep her anguished whine and stared terrorized at the deep, bleeding gash.

    “Wh- what do you mean? A- are they venomous?!” she breathed and started shaking. Set shook his head and looked behind them to search for an exit of some sort. The Prerk looked back at the blood-red claw, licked it, screeched ecstatic and stared intensely at the bleeding human. “Set… what the hell is going on?! They- they look like they’re going to eat me!” she whispered alarmed.

    “Well… Prerk are addicted to the iron that is bound to the molecules in your blood… what’s the name again…”

She shot a brief glance towards him. But Set looked serious. Not only serious but actually concerned.

   “Hemoglobin? The bastards are  _addicted_ to my  _blood_  because it contains  _iron_?!” she croaked panicking and gulped as the Prerk approached again, more carefully this time. In their usually blank faces now lay an obviously avid glare; their mandibles clacked and slobber dripped down to the filthy ground. Like hungry animals they stalked closer.

Jenna looked at her bleeding arm and suddenly felt an idea hit her.

“Set! Do you have anything in your Pak that I could use to communicate with them?” she whispered and waved hectically with her hand. A metallic object was squeezed between her collar and the skin of her neck.

    “When you speak now your voice will be translated into their’s and you will understand them… but believe me, they won’t listen…” he growled lowly and flexed his muscles, ready to fight to his last breath. Jenna nodded and then she left his protective grasp and took two steps towards the ecstatic crowd, menacingly and with a stern stare. The Prerk flinched back and screamed.

    “ _Vvvviiile beasssst! Chhhh_!” one shrieked and the others took up the chant. She stopped and angrily clenched her fists while she tried to ignore the pain in her arm and her shoulder to appear strong.

    “I want to speak to your leader!” she yelled with firm voice and stared the nearest Prerk down. It snarled fretful and let his gaze rest on her bleeding arm.

    “ _Chh-chh, I don’t ssssink he wantsss to talk to you…_ ” it cackled and caught at her. Jenna swung her pole and it scurried back.

    “I am not talking to you, worm! I want to see the giant hopper, right now! It concerns this…” she raised her arm high up for everyone to see it and wiped some of the blood off with a finger, wary not to touch the wound directly with her dirty finger. When she tossed some drops into the crowd the Prerk fought, trying to catch them.

    “ _Ccchhhh, give ussss your bloodssss_!!” the little one hissed again, approaching her once more. The others mumbled something similar as well and came closer. The panic rose in her again as they approached like zombies but she forced herself to stand still and speak calmly.

    “If you think the few liters in my body will satisfy you, go ahead. But I have a way to give you more of it, leaving you with a sizeable stash! Moreover the stuff would be purer and didn't taste like human.” There, that was her trump card. Hopefully it would work as planned.

Rooted to the spot the Prerk at the front stopped and turned to the others. They started chattering all over the place when suddenly a loud, deep roar bellowed through the tunnel. The giant of a Prerk ducked under the entrance and the smaller Prerk scrambled off hastily. He towered over Jenna and although he was at least 30 centimeter smaller than Set he rose above her like a mountain.

    “ _We don’t dealssss withssss Irken dogssss! But…you’ssss not Irken… what issss you and why do you hasssss the ssssubssstancce in you?”_  he bawled, grabbing her arm before she could react. His mandibles closed around her wrist sucking the blood with relish. She heard Set snarl behind her and quickly swallowed her cry.

    “I… I’m a human… my planet has been destroyed by my Irken master; I’m the last one of my kind… if you’d let him return to his ship he can synthesize a whole damn stockpile of my blood! But when you kill us you get nothing, only the wrath of the Irken armada on your tail!” she grabbed his chitin helmet with her free hand, what he hadn’t expected obviously, and forced him to look at her. “So: Do you want this to pay off for you and your crew, or rather have them led into disaster? Just so you know: this collar around my neck? It’ll explode when I die! And I assume you’re familiar with Irken explosives?” she took a deep breath and waited. In her mind she hoped that giant had understood everything. He gave her a long look, cast one towards Set and clacked with his mandibles before staring at her eyes again.

    “ _And how isss that sssupossed to work, hm? We letsss you on your ssship and you fly off? Fffire at usss with your lasssersss perhapsss, yess? I sssink not…”_  he hummed and tightened the grip around her arm. Jenna whimpered and Set growled something in her language:

    “It’s no use! Step back, I’ll get us out of here!”

She pulled herself together and returned giant’s glare; she wouldn’t die here, and the strong-headed Irk merely able to stand on his own legs  _certainly_  not. After all he was her ticket home… someday maybe.

    “How about… a bargain? You let my master return to his ship so he can synthesize the blood for you and I stay here, as a pawn. If he runs you can do with me as you please… if not, the blood is traded against me and  _you_  can fly off. I give you my word!” she shouted so that every Prerk present could hear it. Her heart stopped. That was all she had left.

Giant mused about her proposal for a while, then he flicked his mandibles and nodded.

    “ _Ssso be it.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> See, I told you Prerk means jumping~ they could've ended up being space-toads tho~
> 
> So, what is going to happen next? Will Set abandon Jenna cuz he's not dealing with some iron-addicts and she'll end up being hopper-dinner? Or will he get them the blood despite his own miserable state?  
> Oooor give them the blood but it's rigged with explosives?!  
> WHO KNOWS!


	14. Prerk - Pt. 3

### \- 8 Prerk -

#### Part 3

 

When Set’s ship came into sight her heart was still pounding with fear.   
  
The Prerk-ship pulled up next to the hole in the hull and connected through a loading ramp with the fringed edges. Giant shoved Set forward and he stumbled into the hangar. He had lost an awful lot of blood by now and could only stagger off to the lab.   
  
Then the Prerk – and especially Jenna – waited impatiently. They had tied her arms on her back and gagged her. Above all they had decided to place her on some crates that seemed to contain some sort of explosives the way Set had scrutinized them before entering his ship.

Blood was still dripping from the cut in her arm even though the coagulation had already set in. Some of the feistier Prerk shot forward from time to time to catch some of the precious liquid. Most of the time they were hindered by a kick from giant’s massive legs.

After a while he took off her bonds and the gag and cowered down in front of her to look the human in the eyes. His eyes were gleaming almost thoughtfully and he tilted his head. The hair-like spikes growing from his helmet were decorated like Rasta pigtails with pearls and other ornaments.

    “ _Why isss you doing thisss? Iff you had ordered usss to kill him, we would have done ssso and you would hass been free… sso: why doesss you prefer to live in ssslavery? You hasss no backbone? What about your dead companionsss?”_  he droned and clicked his mandibles. Jenna slouched her shoulders and shook her head with a feeble sigh.

    “He is… everything I have more or less. Without him I would be lost in this vastness… I would end up dead faster than I could even realize. His control is my shelter at the same time. Where should I go? My planet is lost anyway, my race doomed to die, no matter if I return or continue to drift through space. But I don’t want to die.” She replied quietly and swallowed her grief and fear. The giant Prerk clicked again.

    “ _Well, then ssstay wisss usss… we wouldn’t harm you, promisss.”_  He suggested softly and his horned wings twitched fortifying. Jenna smiled and touched his claw.

    “That’s very kind of you… but he would never let me go with you. He would be furious with rage and probably destroy you all. In some strange, twisted way I mean something to him even if he just sees me as his own. As long as he doesn’t lose his interest in me I am fairly safe and maybe I could influence him after a while.” She said under her breath and looked over to the Irken ship.

He followed her gaze and hissed surprised.

    “ _Aaah, I underssstand… it iss a rare thing that an Irken dog isss allowed to enjoy the pleassuresss of the flesh… no wonder he didn’t kill you by now.”_  He laughed rumbling and shot her a pitying glance which she commented with a sad smile. Then he felt around inside a dirty pouch on his hip and pulled out a little, black pearl. “ _Jusst in casse you change your mind… thiss should take him out for a while, sssomething more than a sssolar cycle.”_

She closed her hand around the pearl, giving him a thankful nod.

Silent they waited for another 15 minutes until Set came limping back into the hangar. He had gotten dangerously pale and dragged himself to the giant tubes. After pressing some buttons synthetic human blood started pouring into four of the bigger tubes, filling them up to the lid. The rail system carried them right in front of the hole.

The little Prerk squealed in glee and lifted the tank on their backs that was almost three times giant’s size. Quickly they scuttled away with it, into the darkness of the ship’s belly. After all tanks had been loaded giant simply tossed Jenna over his shoulder and carefully stalked to the opening while never letting Set out of sight.

    "Stay at the door, he thinks you're hiding a weapon somewhere!" Jenna called out and he narrowed his eyes yet obeyed her, clenching his fists from strain causing even more blood to run from his cut hands. Giant carried her across the edge of the breach and propped her on her feet.

    " _You waitsss until we're gone... Then he may ssstart the enginess... Good lucksss little creature._ " His claw gently brushed over her forehead and he took a leap back into his own ship. The hatch closed the second their leader was inside and only moments later the space ship raced off into the void like an arrow.

When Jenna couldn’t make it out among the stars anymore she shot around to run towards Set, and watched him collapse to the floor. With a scared shout she rushed to him, falling on her knees beside him to shake the Irk.

    “Set! Set, wake up! God, Set, please!” she slapped his cheek lightly, shifting an eye lid open and tugging on his antenna. Only the latter evoked a reaction: he groaned, opening one eye – the other was encrusted with blood and swollen shut. With a trembling hand he pointed towards the door, at a red button, and slurred something in Irken. Although she couldn’t understand a word she got the gesture and jumped to her feet, slamming a fist on the button.

The hangar was tinged in red light accompanied by a shrill siren and a robotic voice boomed loudly in Irken. Several metal arms descended from the ceiling to start repairing the breach in the hull. Others grabbed the unconscious invader, lifting him up and connecting to his Pak to replace the torn off spider legs.

Jenna could just stand by the door and watch the whole procedure nervously, her heart pounding with fear.

After what felt like an eternity she got bumped in the back by something and jumped aside as a metal bier came floating through the door for the arms to bed Set on it. The alarm turned off, leaving a deathful stillness in the hall. She swallowed hardly and grabbed the handle of the bier. It was moveable like a body floating in water so she pushed it towards the elevator, past the dead Prerk and the blood-smeared wall.

He was barely breathing when they arrived on the lower level of the ship; Jenna hurried past the lab and other doors to the MedBay at the end of the hallway where she had awoken not that long ago.

The doors slid open, the lights went on automatically and as soon as the bier was inside, it started moving on its own, connecting with a docking rail at the back end of the room. She followed it, punching one of the glowing panels marking a storage unit, hoping to find something useful inside.

The first shelf that slid out of the wall was a slam-dunk: She found black gloves and slipped them over. Although she could now use only tree fingers she was glad that the sleek material contracted around her tiny hands for a tight fit. Jenna turned back around towards Set and tried to keep a clear head over the situation she was facing. Not an easy task with all the blood that wouldn’t stop running!

    “First… the suit has to go…” she said under her breath and pushed the bier down a bit to better reach around him. Carefully, not to move his dislocated arm too much, she stemmed his torso up from the litter, already panting from the weight. With a shaking hand she felt around his back for the Pak resting in a hole.

    “ _DEFENSIVE MODE!_ ” a robotic voice from within the Pak shrieked and a vicious electric shock flashed through her body.

    “Augh! Shit!” she cussed and clenched her fist to stop the seizure still shaking her. She knew which one of the three panels Set used to activate his armor… if she was just quick enough…

Without thinking about it for any longer she swiftly felt for the Pak again and punched the panel in the middle, causing an even stronger shock that made her bite her tongue at the jolt . At least the armor retracted, leaving Set naked on the bier. Jenna bent over him to examine the countless cuts and scratches the Prerk had dealt him. Most of them, on arms and hands, weren’t that severe but they were many and she soon worried about the gaping wound at the crook of his neck and the cut right over his left eye that were both still leaking pretty badly.

She looked through the drawer again, finding a box of swabs. But to thoroughly clean the wounds before even thinking about closing them she would need a disinfectant or another suitable liquid to get rid of the filth they both were still covered in.

“Dammit… if only he was awake…” she hissed, sifting through more drawers and cabinets. She came across multiple containers with liquids in them but they all smelled pretty hazardous and the labels were all in Irken. “Fuck!” she yelled helplessly and kicked one of the cabinets in despair. With tears in her eyes she looked down on the pale alien whose chest was barely heaving.

Suddenly she noticed a silvery glimmer next to her and screamed startled before realizing what it was that scared her.

“SIR!? W- where do you come from; I- I thought you were still on the other ship! Oh shit, I’m so happy to see you!” she lunged at the robot to hug him close to her body. SIR shrieked in horror, writhing in her arms trying to get away before clawing at her and tearing her cheek open. But Jenna only grabbed him tighter. “Yeah, I’m happy to see you, too.” Finally she let go off him to wipe a tear from her bloodied face. “You have to help me; I got to treat Set’s wounds, but I can’t read Irken and I could accidentally give him something toxic! Please!” she looked at him with pleading eyes, staring into his emotionless robot face.

The red eye glowed; then it turned blue and he nodded slightly. “Thank you!” a relieved sigh burst from her chest. First she handed him the translator that was still squeezed between the collar and her neck.

“If you could change the setting to Irken you’d be able to read the labels to me and hopefully I can make something of it…”

He tinkered with the translator for a bit and Jenna watched him closely. Alien symbols quickly changed on a little black screen. When the Irken symbols appeared SIR stopped and gave her the gizmo back. She tucked it back into the space between explosive collar and neck and handed SIR one of the bottles she had found in a drawer next to the gloves. He studied it and said something.

Unfortunately that didn’t tell her bull.

“Damn…” she kept looking until SIR poked her, pointing at a poster at the other end of the room.

It was something like a first aid chart. “Oh…” she made and felt like screaming.

SIR quickly translated it to her, which steps to perform first and scooted off to find the right disinfectant. She grabbed the depicted tools, already bending over Set again. With a spare glove she bound her hair back and started to pick crumbs of dirt and filth out of the bigger wounds.

SIR returned to her with all kinds of liquids and told her which one to use for what. First off she grabbed a clear solution that had a pungent smell like lye and cautiously washed out the wounds while scraping the contaminants out of it with a swab. No matter how warily she operated, Set growled in his blackout and his antennae had started to twitch at the pain.

Next SIR gave her a container with a viscous, green substance.

    “What’s that?” she asked curiously and he read the inscription to her:

    “To adhere and coagulate smaller wounds and cutting damage.”

Jenna nodded thoughtfully and took the flask.

    “That’s perfect; with this I can quickly treat the smaller wounds and tend to the complicated cuts sooner.” She had finished cleansing the area around the cuts and started applying the organic adhesive with a swab. It sizzled and blistered and she recoiled in shock as Set bared his teeth and awoke for a few seconds form the pain.

    “W- where am I?!” he croaked, the eye not crusted with blood looked through the room and remained on Jenna. “Oh, right… I’m dead…”

She quickly put a hand on his face, thumbing his cheek.

    “No… you’re alive, Set! I’m here and I’ll make sure you’ll get back on your feet! Stay with me, okay? Set? Hey, stay with me!” she called out as he spaced out again, slumping back on the bier unconscious.

Like a madman she continued to close the cuts; on his right arm, his left, before stopping at the deep stab wound at the back of his hand but she just hoped that the glue would adhere it never the less.

She was much more careful with his face, pressing the side of her hand against his forehead to prevent the caustic substance from dripping into his eyes.

Finally all wounds beside the cut over his eye and the gash in his neck were closed and seemed to heal already. “Where is the banked blood?” she asked SIR over her shoulder and searched for the silvery bandages. She knew the package so it didn’t take her long to find them. The robot came running with multiple glass tubes filled with crimson blood and Jenna could distinctively notice that he looked worried, scared almost. She smiled.

“Don’t worry; he’s going to make it.”

She had no idea how the strange transfusion-machine was supposed to work so she checked the Irken first-aid chart again. Apparently you couldn’t just jam a needle up their arm and transfuse a bottle of blood. She would have to connect the cannula with his Pak.

She grabbed one of them, connected its tube with the first flask of blood and screwed the container into the designated position on the transfusion-machine. Jenna didn’t notice how swiftly she performed these movements; her only thought was not to lose the Irk. She left it to SIR to connect the cannula with the Pak; her hands were still a bit numb from the intense shocks.

Then she examined the neck. The wound was still bleeding heavily. “SIR, I’ll need this stapler-thing…” she muttered concentrated as the robot already put it into her open hand. She quickly checked which side was supposed to go up and squeezed the wound’s rims together, adjusting the clamping-pistol. She swallowed hardly and pulled the trigger. Set groaned faintly when the metal clamp penetrated his skin.

“Sorry…” she mumbled and closed the gash with a total of nine of the clamps. Afterwards she cleaned the stitched wound again, applied adhesive and wrapped a bandage around his neck.

“Alright… now it’s only the cut above his eye…” she whispered with shaking voice and gave it another look-over. It was too close to the eyeball that she would have been able to use the stapler on it or the glue but too deep for just the bandage.

She glanced over to SIR. “Do you got something like a laser in that head of yours? Come up here for a sec.” she added when he gave a nod and jumped onto the bier. She showed him the gash and he flinched at the sight, looking up to her. “I want you to seal the wound with the laser, but you have to be careful, so you don’t hit the eye. I can put my hand over it; that should shield it enough.” She returned the gaze from his lens and he stared at her for a moment before answering.

    “That I can do… but are you sure you want to risk getting burned yourself?” his tone was sly, leery, as if he was about to put her commitment and loyalty to the test. She nodded seriously, covering Set’s eye with her hand while not breaking eye-contact with the robot. From his helmet he snapped a little arm carrying an already glowing laser and moved it closer to the wound.

SIR started at the temple and the stench of burned flesh was soon stinging in her nose. Both still stared at each other; SIR didn’t need his eye to control the movement of his laser over the wound, he just wanted to make sure that she wouldn’t bail.  Suddenly the laser twitched, scorching her pinky finger and she screwed her face into a silent scream; but she kept her hand where it was.

Then SIR was already done and jumped off the bier. With clacking steps he left the room - his work here was done. Jenna growled after him and clenched her fists to bear with the pain.  The tube with blood was almost empty when the machine gave a bleep and she cautiously removed the cannula from his Pak. Sighing she wrapped another piece of bandage around Set’s head, over the sealed cut.

And then she noticed his still very dislocated right arm and cursed at her inattention.

With carefully applied pressure she felt for the socket, grabbed the shoulder and his upper arm.

    “I’m sorry… again.” she breathed and jammed the joint back into the socket. It snapped audibly, then Set roared, shooting up from the bier. He gasped through gritted teeth, groaning, trying to catch his breath, grabbing his arm. His eyes snapped open and he shouted again, feeling for the aching eye in utter confusion and start. Jenna grabbed his hands and climbed on the stretcher to keep him from simply jumping off.

“Set! Stay calm, you’re safe! I’m here…” she took his face in her hands and looked him into the eyes. He was breathing heavily but his gaze cleared slowly.

    “How… how bad is it?” he asked her, his voice strained and looked at his patched up hands. Jenna gently brushed over his forehead.

    “Well you looked quite miserable at the beginning; you were covered in bruises and cuts, some of them deep, like the one over your eye. SIR helped me to treat your wounds, he actually sealed this one with his laser.” She replied softly, tugging cautiously at the bandage.

Set lifted his head.

    “SIR is alright?”

She nodded and he sighed relieved. “Go on?”

    “You had a pretty deep cut in your neck; it bled so heavily I had to transfuse blood to you… other than that you had multiple smaller cuts… oh, and your right arm was dislocated. Can you try to move it?” she added nervously. That had been her first time to set somebody’s arm.

He did as she told him and nodded.

    “It’s still aching, but at least it’s reset…” then he looked at her, bewildered. “You saved my life.”

It was a simple statement but he sounded so stunned that she smiled at it, not sure what to return to that. “You saved my life,” Set echoed, “you freed me from war captivity, put yourself up as a pawn and treated my wounds. And I can see that SIR tested your strength of nerve…” he gently took her hand with the burned pinky and kissed it carefully. “I’m proud of you… I had still doubted your sincerity about being loyal to me… but I’m surprised I was wrong about you. I wasn’t aware what you were capable of.” He grinned and tugged on a sticky, dirty strand of hair. “I get the feeling we should take a bath.”

She felt a flush rising to her cheeks and tried to slide off of the bier when a smarting pain went through her forearm. Set widened his eyes and lifted her blood-crusted arm; the wound the Prerk had left was leaking again. “Hold on, I’ll handle this.”

He looked through a drawer behind him and got a little flask with a red fluid in it, smearing some of it on her wound with a swab, careful not to touch any of it. It burned and she pressed her teeth together.

    “What… is that?” she managed to hiss and noticed perplexed how a dark crust formed over the gash so quickly she blinked confused.

    “I developed it on your blood’s basis… it immediately coagulates and disinfects the wound.”

Jenna shot him a shocked glance. But Set waved her off.

“Don’t worry; I didn’t put any of it in the blood I synthesized for those filthy Prerk… I’m not really looking forward to another confrontation with them…” he wrapped a bandage around her arm and lifted her up in his arms. “Come, you’re almost smelling worse than you look.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm really excited about the next chapters... things'll get TALL  
> like...  
> TALLER than before...
> 
> :)
> 
> (and probably worse)


	15. The Massive

### \- 9 The Massive -

 

_Spaceship – Time: 5 days and 12 hours since abduction – Destination: The Irken armada_

 

A blissful sound slipped Jenna when she let herself sink into the tub filled with warm cleansing gel that was nearly as soothing as an actual bath. Set growled in pain as he followed her lead and his maltreated body came in contact with the hot liquid. He sat himself across from her in the bowl-like tub, letting his arms dangle lazily over the edge. She looked down her body and watched as the dirt slowly came off her skin, getting caught in little bubbles, and floated out of the tub towards the ceiling from where fresh gel slowly dripped down. Dreamily and relaxed she poked the spheres making them wobble.

Set sighed heavily and closed his eyes. Jenna smiled, rubbing her arms to get more of the filth to come off even though the gel itself did a great job.

A hand felt for her and Set pulled her to his body what made her blush and hold her breath, but it was soon clear that he was way too tired and exhausted to think about sex just now. He simply turned her back to his chest, wrapping his arms around her and letting his chin rest on her head.

Jenna relaxed again; then she felt him grimacing and suddenly something wet dripped on her head as Set poured the gel over her hair, trying to disentangle the strands with his fingers. She leaned back against his chest, cleaning her hands and feet.

    “Hold your breath.” Set simply mentioned when he already submerged her and the sudden heat almost burned her face. Startled she snapped her eyes open and was surprised that she could see his face clearly through the gel. He stroked through her hair, fluffing it up and causing a whole cloud of dirt to emerge from it. She surfaced again, wiping gel off her face and turning towards him.

He had an unbent look on his face, even though he kept his swollen eye slightly closed. Jenna noticed the still crinkled antenna that trembled slightly and reached for it. At first he flinched but eventually dipped his head and she examined the injured sensory organ. As careful as she managed to she felt over it, trying to straighten it out.

Set gasped - whether from pain or arousal she couldn’t tell – and dug his sharp fingers into her side. Ignoring the pain she stroked the stalk over and over and slowly the antenna regained its straight, slightly curved form.

Finally she gently stroked both antennae back over his head and kissed the hurt one.

    “You okay?” Jenna asked quietly, her other hand petting his arm. He just nodded at her shoulder, hugging her closer and let himself sink back against the tub.

   


She couldn’t tell how long they stayed in there like this. It might’ve been hours since the gel didn’t cool down and the repose was so soothing that they both lost all sense of time.

But at some point SIR entered the bathroom, rasping something in Irken. Set growled something back and hoisted himself out of the tub. Jenna watched and climbed out of the bowl on his call.

    “Is something wrong?” she asked and took one of the big towels he handed her, surprised that something so familiar existed on a space ship. The Irk wrapped his own towel around his hips and turned to face her.

    “Your suit is ready, you should try it on; also I would like to build in some more gadgets… the incident with the Prerk showed me that this armor shouldn’t just be there to protect you.” He took the towel that she had put around her shoulders and rubbed it over her head. Amused by her tousled hair he continued doing so until she tried to fend him off whereat he simply caught her in the towel and enwrapped her in it until she could barely move.

    “Do I  _have to be_  naked for this?” she protested as Set attempted to throw her over his shoulder. He placed her back on the ground and nodded serious what made her eyes grow bigger. The alien snickered. “You’re awful!” she tried to kick him but he just tugged the towel closer around her.

    “I know, human… but you’re just so easily fazed.”  He kept on chuckling and started to tickle her through the fabric.  When she didn’t laugh he made a face and finally released her from the towel. “Alright, put on some clothes, I’ll go ahead.” With a push on his Pak’s panel his own armor, still scratched and bedraggled, encased his body and he left the bathroom. Jenna took a fresh uniform and pulled it over her head. She didn’t find any pants though.

    “Great…” she groaned and followed Set into the hangar.

The hall looked like there hadn’t been a fight at all between the Prerk and them. The walls and the floor had been scrubbed flawlessly clean, the hole in the hull was patched up and the corpses of the fallen Prerk had been disposed of.

Set stood in front of the tube she had been scanned in, inspecting the green suit before him. It looked different from his own: not that heavily armor-cladded but more like a reinforced catsuit. At the joints it was made from a soft black material embedded with a green hexagonal pattern; the areas of thighs, shins, arms, shoulders and chest, as well as part of the abdomen were covered in green plating while the rest of the suit underneath the shells was made of a dense, shimmering matter reminding her of Kevlar. A big, heavy belt wrapped around the waist, decorated with an awful lot of buttons.

Set spun the suit around and Jenna saw that the back was rather well protected by the big plates of green armor concealing it. Yet it looked like they would allow a great amount of mobility.

    “Wow…” she breathed stunned and touched the slick plating.

    “You like it?” Set asked, not even hiding his pride. She nodded and looked up to the alien.

    “Can I put it on right now?” her excitement educed a little smile from him and he pushed the big belt buckle, initiating the suit’s retraction right into the belt. Jenna opened her mouth in utter fascination. She never really got to figure out how Set’s armor was able to fit inside his Pak but this was just ridiculous! He handed her the heavy belt and she turned a little timid. What if the suit did malfunction and just crush her upon activation?

Set showed her how to activate it; she had to squeeze two pressure points at the top and bottom of the buckle. Nervous she wrapped the belt around her waist. When she closed the buckle he bowed down to her, looking her into the eyes with a stern expression.

    “Listen closely: You will wear this belt at all times from now on, understood? And if you put it off for sleeping, always keep it within reach.” He straightened again and took a step back. “This is now your life insurance when I’m not around you and something like the Prerk-dealio happens again. Not that I will let my guard down like that ever again. Go ahead, activate it.”

She nodded, slightly worried by his lecture, and squeezed the buckle, holding her breath.

The suit shot from the belt with a whirring, enclosing her body tightly but without constraining it. Now she finally started to understand how the armor’s material seemed to work: Upon activation, a green liquid shot from the big cases mounted to the belt which she had mistaken for pouches, following the black catsuit building the base of the suit, and hardening at the air within a split-second.

The suit had a perfect fit, followed every movement and weighed nearly nothing.

She exhaled loudly, looking down her body. Now she noticed the boots and gloves the suit had attached to itself; they were actually some more plates encasing her feet that stuck in the bottom layer of the suit like it was a tight onesie.

An uninterpretable look moved over Set’s face as he nodded.

    “Looks good… jump, why don’t you?”

She shot him a confused glance but followed his order and hopped tentatively. It wasn’t even a jump, yet she got catapulted into the air up to almost a meter and gave a startled yell. Staggering she hit the ground and grabbed Set’s arm so she wouldn’t topple over.

    “Oh  _shit_!” she called out laughing, taking a running start before pushing off of the floor. The suit flung her up two, three, four meters until she could reach one of the tubes on the ceiling, quickly clinging on to it. With her eyes shining she looked down at Set, slightly out of breath. A weird tingling went through her legs, as if she had been running for half an hour. Unsure she dangled from the tube and tried to bring herself to let go of it. Set grinned scurvily.

    “Come on, you don’t have the guts?” he grated with a laugh and she braced up. Even so she screamed a little when the floor came flying towards her. But the suit absorbed the shock perfectly; as if she had merely jumped off a chair.

Overwhelmed she looked down her body.

    “This is crazy…” Jenna muttered as Set stepped up behind her, tracing her hips with his hands.

    “The suit improves your movements and supports them, but it also takes energy from you, which you might have noticed already. The surface of the black base-garment connects directly to your muscles through very thin needles, small enough to fit in between your cells. This means that you got to get in shape if you want to use its full potential… We might as well start with your endurance…” he breathed, letting his teeth grace the rim of her ear, causing a shiver to run down her spine.

Jenna’s heart did an almost painful jump before speeding up; she didn’t dare to breathe. “The design is perfect, although I might just improve some aesthetic details…” the Irk purred, circling the curve of her breast plating that was anything but skimpy. Suddenly the hands were gone and with them the Irk, so that Jenna almost fell over.

“But enough of that; first I need to install the translation-module so you can speak properly and not your human gibberish!” he ranted on taking the belt from her and returned to his workbench, his spider legs already dismantling the belt. SIR passed him some more tools from his head.

She shook the shiver from her body and walked over to the glassed wall to watch the passing stars.

A sudden thought hit her; and she wondered why she hadn’t asked him his earlier.

    “How… how did you find us, exactly?” she wanted to know, resting her forehead against the cool glass.

    “Huh?”

She smiled upon this almost familiar response.

    “Well, there are so many planets and solar systems in this galaxy alone… how did you find Earth out of all places?” she specified her question and turned around, leaning against the window, crossing her arms. Set mirrored her movement, while still tinkering with the belt. His expression was a sardonic, crooked grin.

    “About a stellar cycle ago – that’s the time your planet needs to finish one round around your sun by the way – a primitive probe was launched from your planet, heading for the surface of that red planet next to your Earth.”

Jenna had to think about this for a second before she realized what he was talking about. One year ago, NASA had announced the successful landing of their latest Mars-rover. Curiosity.

Her eyes widened in both shock and gradual understanding.

“The electronic transmission-exchange between this probe and its ground control base was so strong that a Meekrobian space-transporter was able to pick it up and trace it back.”, he continued. “That was… half a stellar cycle ago. The Irken Empire was at war with Meekrob at that time; I myself lead one of the attack sweeps during the siege of the planet. The Meekrob wanted to trade the coordinates of your planet against a not-so radical organic sweep of their own planet and that they would be allowed to leave in peace… a trade for their freedom if you want to call it that.” He shrugged and gave the belt a last look-over, approaching her.

“Well, the Tallest signed the treaty, got the coordinates and initiated a full scale organic sweep on Meekrob, eliminating their entire civilization. A win-win deal for us.” He propped his hand against the wall next to her head, handing her the belt.

    “Hm… why am I not surprised by that?” she said under her breath, wrapping it around her waist again. “And why were you sent to Earth out of all invaders?”

The Irk puffed himself up proudly.

    “My Tallest literally gave the Earth to me. Since I had already conquered five planets in Operation Impending Doom 1 – until it got cancelled – and served as Admiral during the annihilation of Meekrob the time your planet got discovered – not to mention my outstanding height – the Tallest sent me to your adorably stunted planet for a simple reckon-mission… a paid holiday so to speak. So I scanned your planet’s surface, checked it for valuable resources you Earthworms hadn’t already dug into, performed atmospheric measures, blahblahbla… all that boring routine work.”

Here he stopped, giving her a long and thoughtful stare. It felt like he couldn’t really believe what he was about to say.

“And then you showed up… with all your weirdness and wonders. When you cut your wrists that one time, when you saved that filthy human, ready to kill yourself for your people’s sake I was surprised of your willpower. You always  _struggled_ ; never willing to fully submit.” He shook his head in confusion. “And when I thought you’d have finally escaped me like you wanted to, you enter an enemy ship to  _rescue_  me and, moreover, to save my life.  _Anyone_  else would’ve left me to die, even my own kind, and that’s something I understand. But you… I don’t  _get_  you. You act illogical and random and… I am…  _drawn_  to you in a weird way because of that, and I even came to enjoy that strange ugly beauty of yours.”

With a conflicted snarl he caught a strand of her hair and tucked it back behind her ear. Jenna felt lightheaded. He sounded sincere and it was the confusion in his voice that told her so. Suddenly Set bent down to catch her in his arms, possessively drawing her to his body.

“Since that day I received the Code… I can’t stop  _looking_  at you! I want to touch you, to feel you,  _all of you_! And the more I try to suppress this desire the less I want to resist it…” his voice was a low growl next to her ear, a deep chirring that vibrated against her neck.

Surprisingly enough, she wasn’t afraid at all. She wasn’t even repulsed. She just waited. Set wasn’t aggressive or malicious right now; he was confused and conflicted. Maybe if she could just assure him in these positive feelings…

Something started bleeping and he turned around, ejecting a spider leg with a communicator from his Pak. The screen displayed the Irken symbol Jenna had seen that one time a red-eyed alien had ordered Set to beat her into obedience. Quickly she activated the suit and listened in on the conversation.

    “ _Invader Set, your ship has been registered in the Massive’s scanning perimeters. Welcome back, Conqueror, we have been eagerly awaiting your return. Please dock at station 1, an escort team shall welcome and take you to the main floor. Oh… and you were ordered to keep your… test-subject in control so that it doesn’t bite the guards._ ” The communicator disappeared within the Pak and Set looked over his shoulder a bit sheepishly.

    “Well, I guess we’re just an hour away from the  _Massive_.” With arms crossed he turned around, scrutinizing her body. “Maybe you should put on something else and not wear the suit for the time being… go… dress up?” he didn’t seem to have any clue on how to improve the human’s appearance. Jenna nodded serious in return, still trying to calm her pounding heartbeat.

    “Alright, my backpack is up there, right?” she pointed vaguely at the ceiling, brushing her damp hair over her shoulder.

    “Yes… shall I leave you alone then?” he replied tensed, and she noticed his crimson eyes darting towards the command bridge again and again; he probably wanted to take care of some things himself so she nodded and he immediately left the hangar.

Jenna stepped into the elevator, catching herself actually pondering on what to wear in front of Set’s leaders. With a grim smile she shook her head, but kept on thinking. She found her backpack leaning against the bed and sat down on the mattress to search through her few belongings. Lost in thoughts she grazed over the pair of jeans she had stuffed into the backpack. These were actually the only thing she deemed fitting for presenting herself to the Irken leaders; after all this was one of the most popular pieces of clothing ever invented on Earth. They were a dark blue, skinny fitting yet comfortable to wear and by the way easy to run with in the case of emergency. So she would definitely wear them.

As she looked for a fitting top to go with the jeans she felt her throat closing up painfully. Under all the other pieces she spotted a green, tight shirt with waterfall neckline and tull running down the side from the short sleeves to the hem, showing just enough of skin to be still called stylish.

She couldn’t say why she had grabbed this beautiful piece; it was a gift from her sister. But for this very reason she would wear it.

Jenna’s gaze fell upon a small make up kit.

 

* * *

 

 Set hectically typed on the console in front of him, giving the latest logs and data records a last look-over for the umpteenth time. He stroked back his antennae, checked his uniform, rubbed his thumb over it, hissed upon spotting a lint and repeated everything. Jenna couldn’t help but admire the sight he presented in his black uniform. The collar was wide and reached up to his chin while the rest of the top fit closely to his body. High cut boots, made from a chitin-like material with a light crimson highlight to them, enclosed his calves, passing into a sharp tip under the knees.

SIR who was sitting on top of the chair’s backrest detected Jenna standing in the doorway and his jaw flapped down. Set spun around and did the same.

    “Did you mean something like this with ‘dress up’?” she asked him mockingly and pointed down her body. She had loosely bound her hair to one side, the end of the plaid braided. The shirt flattered her frame as well as the tight fitting jeans. She didn’t pack a lot of shoes so her feet now stuck in simple black ballerinas. Her skin was almost flawless from the make-up, her eyes big, outlined with Kajal and mascaraed, making the eyelashes look like feathers. Small jewels were pierced through her ear lobes.

The alien slowly stood up to approach her, letting his hand float closely over her cheek, afraid a touch could break the image. Slowly he circled her, carefully caressing her back and facing her with big eyes.

    “This is… I mean… how did you do that?” he returned awestricken, a proud grin about to rise to his face. She smiled, casting her eyes to the ground; his speechlessness flustered her.

    “So, you like it?” she asked and Set nodded quickly.

    “I bet the Tallest won’t even recognize you! Hah, they’ll probably think I’ve managed to civilize you!” he snickered and rubbed his hands together in contend while Jenna felt that sting of fear rise again as a giant space ship appeared out of nowhere. Countless smaller ships surrounded the massive ship. Set noticed her stare and straightened.

“The  _Massive_! We’re almost there. Do you feel sick? You better not throw up!” he sputtered excitedly, throwing himself into the seat grabbing the cyclic to maneuver his ship closer to the  _Massive_. Jenna leaned inside the doorway, clinging to the metal. With every kilometer they closed in on the ship her knees got weaker.

Finally they hovered through an opening in the lower part of the  _Massive_  and with a jerk Set’s ship docked to something. For a moment he just sat there taking deep breaths. Then he smoothly rose from the seat, flattened his antennae one last time and marched towards the door. When he walked right past her without giving her a second look she flinched confused. Nothing else followed and she grew more and more insecure until she ran after him panicking. She tried to touch his hand but a crack of SIR’s whiplash made her recoil with a start.

The robot kept her at distance to the Irk, menacingly clacking his jaw at her when she accidentally came too close. Furiously she stared him down and felt hot tears of bile and fear but swallowed them as soon as she entered the hangar after Set, stepping on the hatch with him.

It opened and a platform lowered them down. A bright light glared Jenna for a second.

Set stepped from the platform ever so casually, strutting up to the two Irken in armor, waiting at the end of the grey hallway. They were wielding long spears with sparks flaring from the blades at the tip. When they passed them the two guards bowed before Set and eyed Jenna both carefully and contemptuous. They were way smaller than Set but still taller than her. One of them hissed at her and she quickly averted her gaze.

They traversed more halls and hallways like this until they stopped at a big door. Set was still turning his back to her and the silence was nerve-wrecking. Then a twitching; he slightly turned his head and looked down at her.

    “Don’t be afraid, nothing’s going to happen to you. Just be silent, let me do the talking and try not to get too intimidated by them, they hate when you show weakness. Be strong.” He gave a small smile before his head jerked back forward as the door slid open.

A deafening applause met them, the light even seemed to grow in intensity and the noise was paralyzing. But Jenna forced herself to keep on walking step by step behind the tall alien. When the crowd really noticed her they went silent at first before a wild chatter broke loose. Everyone pointed at the human, they raised themselves on tip-toes to get a good look at her and flinched at her height.

Until now they had been assuming that all of the taller, intelligent species were already conquered; such a tall alien that overtopped most of the regular Irken was a little sensation.

Jenna heard the excitement and agitation in the mass and although she couldn’t understand a word she saw the curiosity in their eyes and felt a bit better.

Set stopped and she looked forward again.

The Tallest were standing right before Set, looking down on him. Jenna’s heart skipped a beat and she had to focus not to tremble at the sight.

They were over two and a half meters tall, their waists creepily wispy as if they were only spine down from the ribcage that stuck in a bulky armor. Their claws were thin and pointed like hooks under the big cuffs covering their forearms and their Paks were so massive that they were peeking out from behind their back.

The invader bowed to his leaders and a quick whip of his antennae signalized her to follow suit, her face turned to the floor.

The by standing Irken mumbled in content before it went dead silent in the hall until Set straightened himself and addressed his leaders. He was talking in Irken and since she didn’t have her suit equipped she couldn’t understand them. But she was able to imagine what he was talking about.

    “My almighty Tallest, invader Set reporting back from his mission to observe planet Z-Z172, called Earth, and to capture one subject of the dominant species for presentation. I can confirm with joy that the observed planet is rich with future slaves, resources and a breathable atmosphere. Its conquest would be of great use for the Empire.”

Cheering erupted in the hall and the Tallest gave Set a nod with a grin. The one with the red eyes raised a hand and the noise died down immediately.

    “We congratulate you to your success, invader Set. You performed exemplary yet again and you shall receive the license to invade and conquer planet E-Z172. You’re granted free access to all necessary equipment and a strike force of your discretion to subjugate the planet’s filthy inhabitants and to prepare the planet for the armada’s arrival. But there’s no rush; now we will celebrate your return – snacks for all invaders in the lounge!” – “Yeah, snacks!” Purple called out and the crowd went wild.

Set thanked his Tallest with a deep bow, signalizing Jenna with a nod to rise. She got up and tried to look up to him but a low hiss let her lower her gaze again. The smaller invaders rushed out of the hall and the Tallest waved at Set to follow them.       

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry I didn't update in such a long time, but it was really rough for me the last weeks and I didn't have the energy to finish anything in that time. 
> 
> But I feel better now and it's much easier to write this part now~  
> hope you're still enjoying it!


	16. The Massive - Pt. 2

### \- 9 The Massive -

#### Part 2

  
The two big door wings revealed a violet room reminding Jenna of a modern hotel suite; just that it was a lot more alien and huge. There were elevated platforms all around, on one of them stood a large lounger not unlike an actual sofa. Multiple screens transferred video feeds from everywhere inside the ship. On one Jenna could recognize the smaller invaders stuffing themselves with the pale chips she had eaten herself on Set’s ship.

Purple flopped onto the sofa while Red positioned himself by the huge window, arms crossed on his back, bending slightly forward like a vulture, and Set simply stopped in the middle of the room, waiting to be addressed.

    “Your ship reported an attack on your way back. It stated that the aggressors were Prerk… we never would’ve thought that those crickets still have functional ships left! I guess invader Larb is in on a pummeling next time!” Purple started, flicking crumbs off his armor. Set stiffened almost unnoticeably.

    “They were fugitives, my Tallest, their ship was hopelessly deprecated and eroded by rust… their attack was desperate but I was taken off guard by their sheer numbers. They managed to beat me down and took me onto their ship.” He answered, clenching his fists.

Now Purple leaned in as well and Red scrutinized him searchingly.

    “How did you manage to escape? For all we now nobody has ever been able to escape Prerk captivity, even with their outdated space fleet.” The Tallest wanted to know. Set allowed himself a short glance to his side, breaking eye contact with his leader, to take a step to the left, exposing Jenna still standing behind him who looked rattled since she still didn’t understand a word that was spoken.

    “My… test subject freed me. She had the bravery and loyalty to follow me inside the Prerk’s ship, risking her own life to set me free. The Prerk noticed the jailbreak but her very blood saved us. It contains a component with an intoxicating effect on them and which they crave. This way we were able to escape them and return to my ship.” He closed the taut report, not mentioning his own injuries. Weakness was deadly.

With a strange look in his eyes Red stared at Jenna, while Purple was downright aghast and a little cross.

    “Hmph, luck, that’s all I have to say… well, we moved your quarters to the upper level, as part of your reward. You are by far the most capable and efficient invader the armada has to offer, Set, left aside you’re the tallest Irk after us in the fleet. Of course we’ll transfer an appropriate payment to your account. Maybe you should buy one of the newest weapons we were able to reconstruct from the Meekrob. You may leave now.” He lazily waved his hand and Set bowed again.

    “Thank you, my almighty Tallest.” He bid them farewell and nodded at Jenna to follow him.

When they had left the room and the doors were closed he exhaled hard, suddenly grabbing her hand. Before she even realized what happened, the alien ran off. She gave a short scream trying not to stagger what was difficult considering their height difference and Set’s long legs, as they already turned around a corner and Set was pushing her against the cold wall. Unrestrained he pressed to her, kissing her hot and long, taking her breath away once again; he liked it when she was near to fainting. Startled Jenna punched his chest to shove him off but the Irk simply ignored her completely, sucking her tongue, biting her lips while his hands literally flew over her body.

All of a sudden he released her, yet only to wedge his knee between her thighs and pull her closer.

“We made it... now nothing can happen to you so easily and I ensured my rank!” he blabbered excited, his antennae were vibrating quickly, and from all the endorphins (or whatever hormones were responsible for his glee) he had forgotten how fragile her body was compared to his, painfully squeezing her arms until she sucked in air between her teeth.

    “I- I’m also happy that it’s over, Set… but- ngh!” she whined and he loosened his grip a little. Jenna rubbed her upper arms and was stunned by the look on his face.

Normally Set would always have a mean and arrogant expression. When he was angry he would often bare his teeth to an animal-like snarl and even in the most relaxed moments, like the one they had shared in the bathtub, there was always a grumpy and worried shadow lingering around his eyes and mouth.  

But now he was genuinely  _smiling_  and huffed relieved.

She couldn’t help but return that smile. “I’m really happy for you! And I’m proud to have such an esteemed master.” She gently kissed the space between eyes and mouth where her nose would have been.  “But you don’t really need to honour your  _promise_  right here in the hallway…” she whispered with a crooked grin, glancing up to the ceiling nervously. The Irk’s eyes widened slightly and he straightened himself abruptly.

    “Ahem… of course not…” he coughed but not without shooting her a longing glare. He snapped the communicator from his Pak, giving SIR the order to bring his stuff along with Jenna’s backpack into his new quarters.

Set determinedly walked up to an elevator, not even looking at the armored guard next to it. He in turn bowed to Set, eyeing Jenna curiously. The elevator quickly took them to the upper floors of the  _Massive_  until they came to a halt in front of a metal door and the alien connected an arm of his Pak with a panel next to the door.

A robotic voice rasped something in Irken and the doors slid to the side, revealing a similar room like the Tallest’s quarters, if not as big but equal in luxury. Set gave a content grunt, slumping on the couch sighing. With lazy movements he kicked off his boots.

Jenna looked around somewhat indecisively before she decided that the bed right behind the couch looked comfortable. Moreover she was still quite exhausted from the commotion and the fight for Set’s life. The bed was really high; she almost had to jump onto the mattress which lined up with the sofa’s backrest.

She had just laid down more or less cozy when the Irk promptly jackknifed over the couch to bend over her.

    “Let’s get back to that promise of mine, shall we? I don’t really like  _owing_  someone.” He rounded dark letting his hand run over her side. Her heart did a startled jump, pounding on in her chest. While Set leaned in on her kissing her neck she just lay there petrified, too taken by surprise and unable to react.

For the first time she noticed things that had never occurred to her since she had always blocked it out through fear and her panicked thoughts;

First and foremost there was Set’s scent she discerned just now. He smelled good, like something unknown yet really good. It had a touch of soap. Jenna concluded that it might have to do something with the high pH-value of his skin.

She grew more aware of the feeling his skin created on her own; it felt like a snake without scales was sliding over her, so sleek, cool and yet it felt alive. Fascinated from the flawlessness of his appearance she raised a hand and tenderly ran her fingers over his skin.

Set lifted his head in confusion, catching her gazing at his hands around her wrist with a distant look.

“Well… I admit I am the measure of all things to you but I do ask you to keep to the point.” He chuckled croaking, grabbing her chin so that she’d look at him. Jenna blinked and caught herself drifting of.

    “Oh! Yeah, right, sorry I was just- you are…” she gasped startled and wanted to sit up but the Irk kept her down on the bed.

    “Yes? What exactly am I?” he asked leery, giving her a teeth-baring grin. “Speak out.”

She swallowed, avoiding the gleaming eyes. Despite her somewhat grown trust she still feared Set’s spontaneous torture-antics. It was highly possible that one was already impending on her if she didn’t manage to soothe his need for attention in time.

She let one leg brush against his, freeing her hands to slip under his shirt and stroke over the broad chest beneath.

    “I was just thinking about how good you smell… how nice and smooth your skin feels and how strong your hands are…” she purred, pleased with her compliments. After all they were honest.

When Set furrowed his brows angered and showed teeth again she screamed internally.

He propped himself on his knees, straightened his shoulders and puffed up while his look grew all the darker. She took the opportunity to crawl from underneath him and keep a safe distance.

    “Nobody wants to hear such  _pathetic_  claptrap! No enemy and no leader will care about my  _smell_!” He shot forward, grabbing the metal collar around her neck to pull her back, turning her around and twisting her arms brutally on her back. Jenna screamed from pain and shock, speechless at how fast the situation was going downhill for her.

Set closed in on her ear, loudly taking a dangerously close snap next to her earlobe. “You should know very well what I want to hear from you but it seems I have to refresh your memory a little…” With this he bit her shoulder, let his teeth dig into the soft flesh until he tasted salty, sour blood. Her scream echoed from the walls and caused his sensitive antennae to quiver. He let up on her but only long enough to spin her around, sealing her lips with a bloody kiss, cutting off the scream, and closing a hand around her throat, slowly choking her. Jenna tossed and turned trying to bite Set herself while already running out of oxygen.

When black dots started dancing in front of her eyes he pushed her back to kneel over her and press her wrists to the mattress with his shins.

Coughing and gasping she tried to catch her breath; tears welled up in her eyes and she glared at Set who looked down on her ever so sinister. His hand touched her cheek, a sharp thumb dug into her throat.

“Tell me, human. Tell me what I am.” He growled lowly.

She just stared at him and grimaced as Set buried the tip of his thumb in the fresh wound.

    “You… you’re cruel! Relentless… heartless, brutal, bloodthirsty and merciless!” she hissed and whimpered as the alien laughed venomously, grinding his crotch against her chest.

    “Go on…” he muttered tensed. Jenna returned his gleaming look; she knew now what he was aiming for. Dirty talk.

    “ You’re tall…” she whispered hauntingly, responding to the touch, “You’re the tallest Irk in the galaxy.” She purred and watched as an unsure grin flashed over his face quickly turning into a distinctly aroused expression.

    “More…” his hand traveled down her shoulder, stripping down the sleeve of her top.

    “You’re so powerful… all alone you triumph over armies of foes and crush those that oppose you…” she let the words drip from her lips like honey and she felt how Set’s breath turned shallow. And suddenly she wanted to finish him off.

“God, you’re so  _hot_!” she purred, arching her upper body in a sinuous motion against his groin. The Irk trembled at the touch, then he was quick to pull on his pants, opened them and his errection almost darted out on its own as he bent over, steadying himself against the wall with his free hand.

Jenna cursed her high jinks and already had the tip of his manhood pressing against her lips. A clear fluid dripped from it, trickling down her chin.

Set grunted something in Irken, an order.

To not further enrage him she opened her mouth a bit, letting him enter. His groan got louder as she sucked on him, sending her tongue on a journey. He slightly pushed inside, burying his free hand in her hair.

When Jenna feared he’d let her suffocate on his dick, Set pulled back, gasping for air. His gleaming eyes burned into hers once more and she writhed underneath his body, licking her lips.

“Was that more to your liking,  _master_?” she stressed the title, breathed it with reverence and yet made it sound scornful. She noticed how his chest was heaving, his antennae trembled and his fingers twitched greedily.

    “It was… a start…” he gasped strained and swayed slightly; apparently she wasn’t the only one with a lack of oxygen. The moment was long enough for her to pull her hands from under his knees and place them on his thighs, massaging their inner sides. Teasingly she let her nails grate over the rim of his open pants onto his bared skin, scratching him.

    “I’m… not that good with words though…” she stated seemingly lost in thoughts while her fingers closed in on his pulsing cock auspiciously before dancing away again. “I can better express what’s going on in my mind with my body, and show you, if you would excuse the profanity.” She continued; her eyes looking up to him big and innocent, with their black lashes, the shade over them…

Set had to gulp trying to keep a clear head but everything his eyes noticed smothered every bit of concentration.

He saw the yellow spots around the pupils of her eyes that appeared to him like green tunnels into a black hole. Without another word he withdrew and Jenna sat up smoothly, her hands stroking up from his legs, stripping the shirt up his body over his chest, all whilst she slowly pushed him onto his back in the same motion to slide over him.

Her hair fell over her shoulders, tickling his belly. The warm skin of her cleavage faintly touched his dick what made the Irk gasp for air once more.

Like an animal of prey she stalked over his body until her face paused right above his and her eyes were lying in the shadow of her hair. He watched the play of her pupils, magically dilating, darkening her eyes as if he would fall right through this tunnel. Her lips were slightly parted and her warm breath sent shivers running down his spine.

Set noticed a feeling close to fear percolating. Never before had such a force captivated him like that. Despite her being so tiny Jenna worked such dominance on him, an elite warrior of the Irken armada, that he could just remain stock-still.

Without letting the widened crimson eyes out of sight Jenna palmed over his chest, down his sides and back up again, grabbing the hem of his shirt to slowly pull it over his head. For a second she let it cover his face, bringing her mouth close to his and breathing a kiss on the cloth. Beneath her she felt the alien’s sturdy muscles contract as she pulled the shirt off in a quick motion, throwing it carelessly across the room.

She sat up again, resting on his trembling chest looking down at him. This was a nice change to be perfectly honest. The sleeve of her top was hanging from her shoulder and she followed his gaze to it. Giving a small grin she stroked it back into place.

Confusion and disappointment were written all over the Irk’s face what made her laugh out loud.

Slowly, watching every stir of his she touched her arms, her shoulders, her neck. She felt a sting of pain when she bent her neck to the side, but the wound wasn’t that severe; just another scratch to add to the others.

Jenna continued to caress her skin, raising her left hand to brush through her hair and noticed the slave brand. She licked over the stylized antennae with the tip of her tongue and felt another shiver rumble under her as she grabbed her top to strip it off as well.

Set made a baffled face upon recognizing the weird piece of clothing covering Jenna’s breasts like cups while at the same time not veiling anything. It was obviously elaborate in design with many details like lacing, small bows and black laces at the rim.

While he was still marveling the sight she grazed over it, squeezing her breasts together. Before he could reach up to touch that wonderfully soft skin himself she leaned forward, grabbing his wrists and pressing them to the mattress next to his head. Although he could’ve easily shaken her off Set just lay still, frozen by her intense gaze.

    “That’s a good boy…” she purred sinister to kiss him open mouthed. The alien was so stunned by the imperative tone in her voice that the kiss shook him even more and he couldn’t contain a sigh as her hot tongue stroked over his and small teeth captured the delicate tip. Afraid she might bite it off Set didn’t move and Jenna sucked the tongue into her mouth causing a sweet pain. His senses were all focused on the events in his mouth that when her little fingers dealt his antennae a flick he gasped startled.

She grinned and released his tongue but kept on kissing him, licking over his lips while rubbing the thin stalks between her thumb and index.

Just now Set realized that his hands were free again and he immediately put them on her back, pulling her closer and slipping into her jeans. Meanwhile Jenna broke the kiss and skidded up to better reach his sensory organs. Before he was able to greatly fiddle around with her pants the Irk gave a mix of scream and moan when she put the antennae into both hands and let her thumbs stroke over them while she licked them at once, emitting a mewling purr right next to them.

He cursed crudely in Irken, digging his fingers into her skin so sharply he could feel her blood prickling on his skin. She cried out in pain and numbed his hearing for a moment so that his head slumped back in paralysis.

Jenna sucked in air between her teeth trying to bear with the pain. Set recovered from his sudden deafness and thus her power over him was finally broken.

With a grunt he flung around, rolling her on her back. His tongue danced over her lips, tickled her ear and licked over the crusted wound at her neck. She raised her hands at a defensive level – a pure reflex.

    “Now it’s  _my_ turn…” Set hissed, grinding against her. She gave him a skeptic look and the fire within him flared. He bent over her, lurking, and his teeth bared to a slight grin while he fought a silent duel with her. When he spotted a lick of fear in her eyes he shot forward to kiss her, forcing her lips apart and coiling his tongue around hers, sucking hard. Jenna sighed, her hands wrapped around his nape. Suddenly he grabbed her throat and she tried desperately to inhale once more but Set simply sucked the air out of her lungs. While he kissed her torturously long he managed to open her jeans with his free hand, quickly going for her swollen clit.

The sensation of suffocating slowly blended with the pulsing waves of pleasure he created to something  _hot_  that drove her closely to the edge.

But Set knew her reactions well enough; as she expected the relieving kick to come he let up on her, pulling back his hand to top it all. He ignored her sound of protest and sat up. Spider legs from his Pak swiftly pulled Jenna to her knees, turning her over until her back collided with Set’s chest. He pressed her closer with his free hands. “You thought you could order me around… I admit: for a short moment I was at your mercy.” He growled right next to her ear, grazing over her side, her hip under her panties down her crotch and over her labia, causing a dull sting in her body.

    “Didn’t feel that short to me…” she replied sassy, grinding against his groin with her ass and felt his jaw muscles tense up in composure what made her snicker.

    “Don’t you get cocky!” Set hissed, painfully squeezing her breasts. She gasped at the rough treatment; the Irk tried to open her bra someway and gave an outraged snarl when the restive contraption wouldn’t obey.

    “You know I could show you how to open that  _without_  tearing it to pieces.” She commented strained, turning her head to bite his tongue that he was sticking out in concentration. Set growled testily but did let go of her arms and poised right behind her with his hands on her hips. Jenna brushed her hair over her shoulder, smacking it into his face intentionally, and twisted her arms to reach her back. With trained movements she felt for the bra’s clasp, loosening one hook after the other. Slowly she took it off, throwing it aside like the shirt. In an almost shy gesture she put her hands on her breasts turning a little to look at him.

Set snarled, kissing her hard and pressing her to his body again. His hands travelled up from her hips, slid under her hands and groped her boobs with eagerness and appetite.

She moaned quietly returning the kiss and raising her hands to reach for the black antennae, caressing, stroking and pulling them whereat Set’s abs pressed to her back tensed up and his touches grew rougher. As she massaged the base of the stalks Set put one arm around her to rub and pinch her nipple, his other hand shot down, cupping her crotch and inserting two fingers into her warmth, teasing her. Jenna moaned and mewled, tightening the grip around his antennae and biting his tongue.

    “Turn around…” Set rounded, already using his spider legs on her. Once she faced him he lowered his head down to her breast, running his tongue around the nipple in spirals, closing in on it. His saliva caused a slight burn on the irritated skin. She panted next to the antennae, taking one between her lips to lick it. Set hissed. “I want you  _now_!” he moaned and pushed her onto her back, impatiently grabbing the hem of her jeans. She helped by lifting her hips off the mattress and her pants sailed across the room.

Then he was all over her again, kissing, biting and caressing every inch he could reach. Jenna’s breath soon turned into sighs as the Irk made sure to set her body ablaze with his hands and his mouth. Her mind was blank; all that was left was crude desire and lust.

Suddenly Set stood up to strip down his pants. When he looked back up she was laying on her back, propped up on her elbows and letting her legs swing over the bed’s edge. Her hair fell over her shoulders like a teasing veil. Curious and somewhat quizzical he looked down at her, but approached and grabbed one of her legs. With a challenging look he pushed it up and higher until it bent over her. Jenna returned his glare unfazed and kept her leg straight without strain until Set was bending over her and her leg touched her upper body.

She cocked a brow, and pulled her other leg up to put her foot against his chest. Slowly she pushed him off her till she was able to sit up and force him on his knees. Again he felt her dominance, felt her gleaming eyes ordering him and yet he  _wanted_ it this way.

Now Set kneeled in front of the bed, still towering her. Jenna leaned in on him, kissing him tenderly; then she wrapped her legs around his hips and sank back on the mattress, her intensive gaze faltering in tension. The alien straightened to his full size, he read what she wanted him to do and recognized his own shallow breath as he put his hands around her hips to pull her closer and thrust into her. A little pained sound escaped her lips but he found himself so overwhelmed by the sensations that his brain shut off and his instincts took control.

He rocked harder, breath ragged and he licked off the sweat forming on his lips. Jenna’s sighing turned a moan and into little screams; her legs clasped tighter around him and her toes clenched from pain and pleasure likewise as the Irk pounded even harder into her. She watched the play of muscles under his smooth skin that now shone from sweat; felt how he swelled inside her and his cool hands brushing over her hot body up to her breasts, rubbing her nipples between his fingers what drove her moaning up an octave. Desperate she grabbed for his wrists but metal arms enclosed hers and pressed them to the bed.

Set grinned slyly; he stopped shortly to seal her mouth with a kiss. His thing tongue writhed between her lips, danced around hers and he sucked on it. Jenna knew what was to follow but before she could brace herself he already squeezed her throat shut, thrusting slowly and then faster while he kissed her hard and merciless. Her lips tore open from his teeth and she tasted blood which his tongue lapped up. She mewled, the air grew thinner, his thrusts harder up to the point where she fret to either explode or faint.

    “That’s a good girl…” Set growled and allowed her to inhale for a second. But too brief; his tongue coiled around hers again, and now he grabbed her legs to put them over his arms.

Jenna wanted to gasp. He pressed in even deeper, filled her out completely, oh so deep! Set moaned loudly and she felt him swell again, about to come. Small bumps on his dick rubbed almost painfully against her g-spot and all of a sudden she came so hard her legs clenched jerking around Set and pressed him to her. He broke away from her and her hoarse cry resounded through the room; her inside convulsed around him and Set came with a low moan, hissing her name before darkness engulfed him.

Jenna slumped back, she cried out again, her voice trembling and her breath a panting wheeziness; her chest heaved frantically, trying to get as much air as possible. Her whole body was trembling, even her lips were shaking. Only a second later Set literally collapsed on top of her, pressing every air she’d managed to get out of her lungs again. His eyes were wide open but emptily staring into the distance.

    “S- Set?” she gasped worried and put her hands on his cheeks when the fierce shock from his Pak jolted through his body, zapping her along with him. Set took a shaking breath and closed his eyes for a second before he rolled over on his side, pulling Jenna halfway on him.

    “That… was different… but  _good_.” He groaned and looked at her smiling. “Really good, actually.” He was breathing heavily, looking down his sweaty body and Jenna followed his gaze. A tad upset yet fascinated she watched how his penis withdrew back into his body like the sting of an insect. The Irk noticed her stare and frowned slightly. “Something wrong?”

Caught she flinched but quickly shook her head.

    “No, I- I’m still not used to how… how  _alien_  you are.” She huffed and nestled comfortably against his chest. A yawn escaped her and now it was up to Set to look at her surprised. “And what’s the matter with you?” Jenna asked sleepily.

    “Why would you open your mouth that widely? Are you planning to eat me?!” he wanted to know with a slightly concerned expression, cautionary leaning back a bit. She made a face and pushed herself further up to reach his lips.

    “Mmmh, yes… human females eat their partners after they’ve had sex. Up to now I’ve been holding myself back but I’m just sooo hungry…”

His wide open eyes and shocked look made her laugh as she stole a kiss from him. “Don’t worry, I just yawned. Many life forms on earth do that but nobody really knows why; tiredness, lack of oxygen… well it’s definitely not dangerous only contagious among humans.” The sudden thought of her family crossed her mind and she felt grief washing over her like a wave, erasing the elation she had felt up to now.

Set seemed to have noticed her mood-swing since he returned the kiss rather gently, embracing her tightly while his spider legs lifted them up so they could lie down properly under the blanket.

    “We’re both exhausted… we should sleep.” He mumbled and tore his mouth open so widely that it reminded her of a lion, until his jaw cracked. Jenna recoiled and broke into laughter.

    “Did- did you just try to yawn?” she asked and pulled the blanket over her face snickering because Set stared at her angrily. He kneaded his jaw and gnawed tentatively sticking out his tongue.

    “No idea why humans find this relieving…” he growled and put his arm around her again, crossing the other one behind his head. “But this I find very relaxing.” His grin was lose and a bit tired but so pleased that Jenna smiled herself. Then he looked at her with a strange expression. Confused she returned his gaze.

A moment it grew silent between them.

And then Set’s throat emitted a high chirp which almost sounded melodic. But before she could say anything to it he fell silent again and rolled over on his side, his antennae whipped through the air in an angry gesture. “Forget it.” He droned.

Perplexed she just blinked at his back and tried to understand what the alien wanted from her. Suddenly the penny dropped and she smiled softly. Gently she wrapped her arm around his middle, grabbed his hand crossing her fingers with his while she skidded as close to his back as his Pak allowed her to. With soft voice she sang to him, sang sweet and quietly until he relaxed under her hand.

She fell silent again and kissed his neck, Set turned around to her, his antennae still trembling.

    “So that’s what you wanted… I should know by now.” She muttered. But there was something that troubled her. “Did you actually pass out this time? I still don’t understand why your Pak shocks you after you came.” She asked curiously, carefully running her hand over the metal sphere between his shoulder blades. It was faintly warm and she felt something like static under her fingers like you do when touching a balloon you just rubbed on a pullover.

Set opened his eyes a slit wide; deep crimson gleamed at her. Not for the first time she found herself fascinated and mesmerized by them. As if you’d look into a gem with its dark center moving.

    “Because I would die otherwise.” He returned calmly and a bit blankly. Jenna’s eyes opened wider.

    “Wait, you mean to tell me that you had something like a biologically programmed asystole? And your Pak performs an electrical resuscitation on you? Like a defibrillator?  Why didn’t you tell me this?!” now she kind of blamed herself for putting him in such danger. The Irk frowned.

    “Why should I? As long as my Pak works everything is fine. And it works as long as I keep it on my body. Which is always. So.” He gave her a patronizing grin and flicked her nose. “You’re thinking too much… even though your head is so very small. Sleep now.” He simply added and settled under the blanket. His Pak whirred and hummed, then his breath went on even and steady.

But she stayed up for long, eyeing his relaxed face, musing.  

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh I had so much fun writing this chapter~  
> No I didn't, because writing sex scenes is a ton of work if you want to get it right x'D  
> jk of course I did
> 
> Hope you guys had a wonderful Christmas holiday ♥
> 
> Picture drawn by me, check my dA page for more :)  
> http://the-true-mek.deviantart.com/


	17. A piece of Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is effing long

### \- 10 A piece of home –

  
_The Massive – Time: 6 days and 5 hours since abduction – Set’s quarters_

 

She was rolled over on her back rather ungently and started from one strange dream she was having, its images already fading. Groaning Jenna turned onto her side, pulling the blanket back over her naked shoulder.

    “Five more minutes, mom… it’s summer holidays…” she mumbled drowsy and was about to go back to sleep when the blanket was gone with one quick jerk and cool, synthetic air brushed over her skin. “Hey…”

Grumpy she turned her head, blinking into the darkness that was suddenly broken by a bright light which made her close her eyes shut. “Augh, please Set… knock it off…” she complained and slumped  into the pillows with a moan, crossing her wrists over her eyes to further block out the glaring light.

   “I’m going to count to three…” she could hear from the end of the bed, his warning tone made her snicker.

    “Then what? I can have the blanket back?”

    “…1…”

    “Or a coffee…”

    “…2…!”

    “ _Fuck_ … coffee would be sweet…”

    “3!!”

    “How ‘bout a ki-“ she didn’t get the chance to finish the sentence, the Irk vaulted over the couch, catching his momentum with strong spider legs, and rammed sharp, pointed fingers into her side. Jenna’s startled scream turned into a shrill laughter, his hands were cold and dug into her soft waist like daggers. “Noo! Sto- stop it! Y- you’re  _hor-ri-ble_!” she shrieked breathless, desperately writhing in his arms. When he heard her gasping for air he actually stopped, resting on all fours, his face closing in on her. “You’re… horrible.” She repeated feebly.

    “I know… get up.” He pecked her on the cheek and already scooted off. She listened to him rummaging in the back part of the quarters while she massaged her aching sides and flung her feet off the bed.

    “Is something the matter? I thought  _you_  were the morning grouch here…” when she didn’t get an answer she rolled her eyes and got up. But her initial reluctance gave way to hectic when she realized that she was still very, very naked. For one reason or another she suddenly thought of the countless screens back in the Tallest’s room and the many, many more surveillance cameras on this ship. Lickety-split she grabbed her backpack leaning against the wall next to the bed and pulled out a big, baggy pullover reaching down to her thighs and put it on.

Her bare feet almost got burned from the cold metal floor as she left the bedroom alcove to follow the loud clatter.

Set was tinkering with his own suit that he had disconnected from the Pak. Apparently it hadn’t been polished enough for him yesterday.

Jenna looked around the vast room. From the door you looked right at the couch, the bed was to the left of it. The sofa was standing in a shallow, triangular shaped hollow in the floor. Just now she realized that what she had assumed to be a couch-table was actually a circular pedestal in the lower third of that triangle. She walked over to the apex of the hollow until she was just standing with her back facing the glassed wall of the ship’s hull, looking straight at the couch.

Now the arrangement made sense; it was the Irken symbol she was wearing on her wrist in a slightly different design. Just behind the sofa stood the bed in an alcove which separated the sleeping area from the rest of the room. To her right the room went on, slightly curving, following the arch of the  _Massive_ ’s hulk like on Set’s ship.

The back part, where the Irk was currently roaming around, was filled with all sorts of workbenches and machines.

The tall alien stood in front one of them just now and snatched some tools from the ceiling that were connected to cables and sprung back once he let them go.

Since she didn’t want to disturb him she sat down on the sofa and watched the stars slowly passing by. The almost healed wound under her shoulder itched and she scratched it lost in thoughts.

A high tapping sound made her turn her head and look down. SIR walked past her, balancing a giant tray piled with the pale chips, gaudily colored smoothies and all kinds of alien food. Swiftly she snatched the bag of chips from the tray and stuck out her tongue when the robot made a clearly angry sound, quickly carrying the food to his master; he had turned around as well upon noticing SIR’s outraged tone and pouted as he spotted the bag in her hands.

He gave an order in Irken and the robot put the tray down neatly, wheeled around and took on a stand ready to jump. His lens was glowing red.

    “U-oh…” Jenna did and quickly shoved a handful of chips into her mouth when SIR already darted for her. “Buzz off!” she shouted, kicking at the robot but he caught her leg and dragged her from the couch. She let her free foot follow and was able to rid herself of the pesky thing with a well-placed boot to the head.

Just when she had scaled the sofa again, pressing defensively into a corner, SIR blasted off the ground with the engines in his feet and tackled her so hard they both plunged off the couch, emptying half the bag’s content over them in the process.

Jenna decided to just stay down; her head was dinning and she really didn’t feel like aggravating the annoying thing any further.

Victorious SIR grabbed the bag and ran back to Set who had broken into reboant laughter, wiping a tear from his eye. She picked up a chip from her tummy, shrugged, and ate it. A shadow fell on her as Set leaned across the armrest; SIR perched on the backrest and gleamed at her gloating. How was a robot able to  _gloat_?!

The Irk was still snickering.

Jenna sighed and gave him a reproachful glare. “Stop siccing your killer-midget on me!” she snapped and booted at SIR but he was wary enough to stay clear of her feet.

    “But it’s  _fun_!” Set chirped delighted, but not any less gleeful than his pet robot, and nibbled on some chips. She rolled her eyes again.

    “Are you at least going to tell me what this ruckus is supposed to mean? Do we have to go somewhere?” she asked to change subjects whereat Set shook his head.

    “I have to meet with my Tallest to deliver my final report and to discuss the conquest of your planet. Maybe I can finish the design of the brain-bugs… anyway: you’ll have to stay here; I don’t want you running around, getting lost and being found by… someone  _else_.” The jealous edge in his voice made her roll her eyes for the third time this morning, already sensing a faint headache.

    “Augh… fine… and what am I supposed to do until then?”

He shrugged.

She cocked a brow.

“Are you serious? I’m on the second alien space ship I’ve ever seen and I’m supposed to stay  _in my room_? At this rate I could go just back to sleep as well!”

Now Set seemed sore.

    “I told you that I don’t want anything happen to you!”

She sulked.

    “Can I at least listen to some music?” Jenna moaned. When Set nodded her mood lifted and she rose from the chaos of chips.

He showed her a computer at the other end of the room. Her iPod already rested on the keyboard with some cables jammed into its port again. Set told her how to access the device from the alien computer and she watched closely as he demonstrated it.

After that they walked to the door, Jenna raised herself onto her toes and straightened but Set wrapped his arms around her middle and lifted her a bit before kissing her passionately.

    “I’m back in a few hours. Don’t get up to anything stupid. I want to keep you a little longer.” He commented as farewell, SIR had been ordered to stay in the quarters with her as a guard.

She let her hand brush over his antennae and felt the Irk quiver.

    “See you later, I guess…” she mumbled, hugging him closely before the door slid shut behind with with a hiss. Undetermined she just stood there, touching the metal of the door. SIR gave a warning clacking but she turned around and ambled over to the computer.

After some button-pressing and switch-flicking, electro-swing filled the room and she lowered the volume nervously; the unknown, and without question hostile environment made her feel uneasy - especially with Set not around.

Since she couldn’t think of anything else to do she flattened out the blanket on the bed, got her backpack and tipped it over. With legs crossed Jenna sat down, starting her stocktaking by pulling her clothes out of the pile and throwing them behind her. Sorting her laundry would have to wait for now.

Her hands found the sketchbook. Slowly she flipped through the few drawings and sketches.

She hadn’t touched it in a while and there was so much free space. She told herself to draw everything she saw from now on.

But first she intended to take stock of what had made it into her new life. The sketchbook was put aside, pens and pencils along with it. Jenna grabbed the pink toilette bag and sifted through her make up. It really wasn’t much, the eyeshadow almost empty, her powder slightly clumped but it would last if she used it sparingly.

    “I’ll need something new… otherwise it’s back to au naturel.” She muttered to herself, continuing to dig through her stuff. Her fingers grazed something hard, something angular shaped. It yielded under pressure; a pack of cigarettes.

She froze.

Carefully she took the pack in her hands, held it like a fragile treasure. Her fingers were shaking slightly. It had been  _days_  (how many she couldn’t say, no sun had been showing her day- and nighttime) since her last cigarette, and even if she didn’t really care about it or felt the need to, this find was both terrific and terrifying. A whole minute long she just stared at the little pack not able to open it.

A metal whirring made her flinch as if caught with her hands in the cookie jar. SIR perched on the backrest again, curiously looking down at her belongings.

“Yes or no?” she hissed and now it was the robot that recoiled.

Confused and also a little mistrusting he adjusted his lens. “Should I open it?” her voice was shaking. He slowly backed away. She handed the pack to him. “You open it!”

SIR snatched the box, turning it around in his claws. But he quickly figured out how to open it. Puzzled he looked from the open package to Jenna and back. “Is… is it empty?” she asked quietly. He turned it to her and she gave a little scream. Before he could react she had already wrested the pack from him and flopped on her back shouting for joy. Without stopping her victory-cry she rolled off the bed, ran to the table, grabbing Set’s empty cup and then paused there perplexed.

SIR was hissing like a firecracker and scuttled around the crazy human, his entire weapons store pointing at her, his eye burning red. She looked down to him.

Slowly she cowered down and made a serious face. “I need your help SIR.” She said softly and smiled. The robot kept his canons leveled at her face.

    “Whyyyy?” he rasped. Jenna pulled one of the three cigarettes from the pack and showed it to him with her heart pounding.

    “This… is really precious to me… these are probably the last I’ll ever get to see… and they won’t last long.  I want you to ignite the tip, here.” she pointed at the white end of the cigarette. “This thing will burn and produce smoke, but not that much… I just don’t know how sensitive your smoke alarms are… Anyway, I’m going to… well, in- and exhale the smoke. And that’s all that’s to it. Just a bit smoke and ashes which I’ll put in here.” She raised the empty cup. “Are you okay with that?” she looked at him fretful.

SIR tilted his head to the sight, his lens changing focus. Then he merely shrugged, lowering one of his lasers. Quickly Jenna put the cig between her lips as a glaring heat brushed over her face and the tip of the cigarette glowed burning red. Reverent she sucked on the filter, inhaled deeply and held it for a second before the smoke slowly escaped through her parted lips. She had closed her eyes and smiled abstractedly as the cold blue smoke burned in her sore throat.

“Shit…” she breathed and laughed. The little robot in front of her looked a little terrified, but didn’t seem that determined to stop her.

Jenna took the cup, rose to her feet and walked over to the window to sink down against it. She looked at the burning cigarette, spinning it slowly between her fingers absent-minded. “Have you any idea how great this is?”

SIR came closer, ejecting some devices from his helm that looked like probes and sensors. Multiple lights danced over the wisp of smoke and the cigarette.

After half a minute (and two careful draws on her cigarette) he put them back, crossing his metal arms in front of his metal chest.

    “You’re inhaling many toxic substances right now… that doesn’t sound… great.” He whirred. His voice sounded different than before. Apparently he was still learning to speak her language.

She smiled shaking her head.

    “I guess you can’t understand it… it’s something about culture, to belong to a certain group. I remember cold winter days when my friends and I would stand outside, freezing, just to smoke a cigarette. I remember nights full of sorrow when I would smoke a whole pack while crying with my best friend about a guy… to me it’s just another small, very short-lived part of my home. And at this point I couldn’t fucking care less about what’s it going to do to me or not, as long as it helps calming me down.”

She smoked it up to the filter and even then she stubbed it out inside the cup with visible reluctance.

“I’m just afraid they won’t last that long… if I just had a few more of them…” Jenna ran her hand through her hair with a sigh, resting her head against the cool glass. She felt a bit dizzy from the deep intakes and the nicotine on an empty stomach.

Suddenly SIR jumped onto her knee, bending over her.

    “If you  _had had_ more of them… would you be less insubordinate to my master?” he hissed inviting. She shot up.

    “What? What do you mean by that?”

His jaw clacked.

    “Iiiif youuu haaaad moooore ooof iiit…” he repeated overblown until she jumped to her feet and he fell to the floor.

    “I know  _what_  you said! What the hell do you  _mean_  with ‘less insubordinate’? When the heck was I  _insubordinate_? What kind of  _word_  is that even!” she interrupted him gruff, stomping over to the computer to change the current song. The robot ran after her and jumped onto the console, pointing a blade at her throat.

    “Don’t  _question_  him. Don’t  _mock_  him.  _Obey_  him. And don’t you ever…  _betray_  him.” His eye gleamed so intensely that Jenna had trouble not to screw up her eyes at that. It was another… test of her strength of nerve apparently. Yet she frowned and returned the lidless glare unwavering.

    “Cut the shit,  _screwhead_ … what’s in it for me?” she replied strained.

For a second she was dead sure that SIR would slice her open without batting an eye, and tensed up while not really hoping for a chance to survive a serious fight. But then SIR raised his claw and pointed at one of the machines standing around. Jenna dared to break the eye contact following his gesture.

The thing was about waist-high and somehow reminded her of a giant, futuristic printer. It even seemed to have a glass plate for scanning.

Curious she approached it, touching the glass. “What is that? You know, I can’t just smoke  _pictures_  of cigarettes; it would totally miss the desired effect…” she sneered but was undeniably enthralled by the device. She didn’t really think that it was  _just_  a printer. SIR’s weird proposal was still coursing through her mind.

The robot jumped from the console onto the machine and knocked with a metal hand (clang, clang) on the glass plate.

    “It’s a Synthesizer. It is able to decode any inanimate matter into its atomic structure and replicate it.”

For a moment she just looked at him uncomprehending but when realization hit her like a baseball bat Jenna gasped and clutched the edges of the Synthesizer with both her hands to not keel over.

    “You- you’re telling me that I can  _copy_  things?!” she panted, her body trembling as if electrified.

A thousand thoughts crossed her mind. Make up, water, food, cigarettes! Her eyes itched and burned, she had to remind herself to blink again. “Show it to me…” she murmured almost dignified and carefully touched the giant metal case.

SIR merely gave her something close to a crooked grin.

She wanted to snap at him when she remembered his  _conditions_.

 _Shit… somewhere there’s always a catch._  Jenna sighed defeated. “Fine, alright. I’m going to be the good, little slave for Set, okay?” she was tempted to try puppy-eyes on him but the less intensively glaring blue eye was enough of a confirmation that SIR was convinced.

He switched the machine on and the glass shone with a purple light.  

“Alright… let’s try something simple for a start.” Jenna huffed and got a bottle of water she had brought along in her backpack. The robot inspected the liquid and pushed a button at the side whereat a round compartment opened with a soft hum. Inquiring she raised the bottle and he nodded. Carefully Jenna poured a few milliliters into the opening until SIR pinched her arm.

The hatch closed again and he touched the glassed surface of the Synthesizer; a pink circle pulsed in its center and Jenna realized that this was a touch screen. At a touch to the circle the glass brightened up and a 3D-model was projected into the air over the glass plate. The human blinked surprised even though she was already familiar to virtual screens appearing out of nowhere by now.

The construct before her was made from countless lines and spheres in between them, two kinds of them.

With an amazed laugh Jenna recognized the pattern.

“That is water! With- with traces of…” she pointed at a medium sized atom isolated within the dense grid of hydrogen and oxygen, “Sodium… magnesium… chloride… Man!” out of pure excitement she had stretched out her hand to reach between the atoms. The hologram lit up in a bright flash and the Synthesizer gave a warning sound. SIR clacked his jaw and smacked her hand.

    “Stupid human! If you paw at everything like a brainless animal you’re going to blow us all up!” the robot shrieked and she recoiled startled. With deeply furrowed brows she dug her fingers into her chin and watched the calming light patterns.

Jenna brushed the insult aside and tried to understand what was required of her to do.

    “Was that all of the light show? What am I to do?” she asked into the room. More herself than the upset robot.

SIR tilted his head and pointed at another button on the touch screen.

    “Push that; you’re going to have to copy the original formula inverted. Someone like my master could solve this formula in a breath of air. Let’s see how you perform or if we’re really going to blow up.”

She did as he told her and the first hologram shrunk to half its initial size. Down at the touch screen the atom-spheres appeared, sorted by their size. Jenna gave the model a brief glance and finally picked the smallest of atoms; hydrogen. But instead of traveling to the top row of the new hologram the atom appeared right in the middle. Her brow shot up and she experimentally chose more hydrogen atoms. They positioned themselves around the first atom, but without connecting to each other via the light bridges. Instead they formed close couples.

Well, that was logical since they needed a partner to share their single electron and complete their shell for a stable connection.

She turned to SIR. “Can I somehow compare the holograms?” she asked and the mech silently pushed another button. Jenna would keep this one in mind.

The chaos she had created merged with the original like a see-through picture and now she could see where the first atom had placed itself within the grid.

Quickly she realized that the structure formed a mesh out of molecules around the first hydrogen atom from the center outwards. She tried an oxygen atom and noticed satisfied how it split the hydrogen molecule apart, connecting itself with both of them resulting in the familiar dipole-molecule that made water so amazing. The bridge between the atoms lit up brightly.

Jenna carried on, intuitively spinning both models with hand gestures to get a better view and let her fingers fly over the touch screen to choose the right atoms.

Despite her growing confidence it took her almost five hours until the formula was complete and found correct after a last scan. A triumphing grin crept over her face and SIR nodded at a big pink button, decorated with the Irken equivalent to a smiley. The machine hummed and buzzed when she pushed it and started doing its magic.

Compared to making out the structural formula the actual production process was a lot faster. An almost ridiculous ‘ping’ sounded telling her that the deed was done. She felt like a goddess as a glass-tube filled with fresh, swashing water plopped out of the Synthesizer. Carefully she grabbed her water and grinned even wider when the door to Set’s quarter opened and said alien entered.

Almost instantly his antennae shot straight up after having scanned the air and he stopped thunderstruck in the doorway, staring into the room. The corner of his mouth was twitching as if he was about to bare his teeth.

Jenna came running towards him, to proudly present her masterpiece.

    “Hey Set! Look what I’ve synthesized!” but before she was able to say something else he had already grabbed her, pulling her out of the room with a hiss.

    “Something’s burning! Someone wanted to kill you!” the Irk snarled outraged, activating his Pak to call for the guards when she put her small hand on his cheek and he felt warm, soft lips on his skin.

    “Nobody wants to kill me, silly. The stench of smoke is, err, my fault.” Jenna said so contrite that he looked at her literally terrified, the big crimson eyes so wide open that they were round; one eyelid was twitching manically as always when Set wasn’t sure if to laugh at her or scream.

    “By the Tallest… please don’t tell me that you got overwhelmed by your primitive instincts and tried to make a fire!” he croaked panicking but she just snorted, freed herself from his slackened grasp without strain and went back inside their room. Still very alertly wiggling his antennae around, and with two spider legs ready to act, Set followed her after just staring at her for another moment.

That woman had  _some_  nerve!

She came back with an apparently empty cup and showed him something looking like fine ashes and something round and brown, with dark blotches at the one end. The other one had been burned and pressed to the ground. The whole cup smelled horrible!

Set frowned deeply. That he hadn’t gotten any form of wrinkles from that was little short of a miracle.  _Dermatologists hate him_ , Jenna thought and had to hide a grin.

    “So you  _did_  make a fire you wretched little…” he started up but she just rolled her eyes and gave him the little pack of cigarettes.

    “Well, let’s call it a  _controlled_  burning of organic matter under SIR’s constant supervision… and mine as well.” She opposed whereat she received a kick from the robot.

    “Master, if I had known what kind of repulsing stuff she was burning I would have never allowed it!” the little snitch shrieked but Set already didn’t pay attention to him anymore. Curiously he pulled one of the white sticks out of their package and eyed it. His antennae flicked and he stuck out the tip of his tongue to smell better. Jenna watched him tensed but remained silent.

Then he crushed the cigarette in his hand and pulverized tobacco and paper between his fingers. She gave a little shocked sound, desperately reaching for the pack containing probably the last cigarette of her life in his left hand.

    “Set, please! Give it back! I’m sorry, I- oh god, please, Set,  _don’t_!” she screamed and tried to pull his fingers apart but without success. With a pained sound she dropped to her knees; the Irk walked past her to the computer. He turned the music off and typed on the console, most likely to throw the pack with the rest of the cigarette and the last one out an airlock. Sure enough a hatch opened and he poured the crumbs in his hand into the black opening.

Jenna couldn’t bear to look as he closed the clap and gave the order:

    “Computer… analysis.”

The computer quickly spat out a bunch of results and read them in Irken. Set nodded and kneaded his chin. “Scan for substances that might be toxic to the Irken organism.” This time it took the computer a bit longer and the list was shorter. Set’s eyes widened a tad. “Any long-term damage?”

One entry lit up. Jenna sat up and looked at him completely confused.

    “What…” she wanted to ask but was interrupted by Set when he turned back around, his eyes narrowed in thoughts.

    “What exactly is this substance that you make such a desperate grab for it? The computer solely told me that it can be addicting and it’s slightly narcotic like a tranquilizer. You inhale it when it burns, right?”

She gave a cautious nod but didn’t leave the pack out of sight as Set pulled out the last of her cigarettes to study it curiously.

    “Y- yes… back on Earth it’s one of the most common drugs… I- I found it in my backpack and SIR showed me the Synthesizer, so… I thought…” she was still confused but Set seemed to remember the bottle Jenna had wanted to show him and straightened his antennae.

    “You can operate it? Not bad… what did you copy?”

She reached behind her where she had dropped the flask and stood up to hand it over.

    “It’s just water… it took me a while to get the hang of it. I’m just afraid that the cigarette might take much longer. Also I’ll need to synthesize the paper and the filter separately, to smoke the tobacco inside it and not have the paper merged with the tobacco.” She tried to explain to him with growing hope. Set seemed way too interested in this that he would just destroy the last one.

The alien shrugged.

    “If I enter the data from just now into the main computer and simply scan the finished product in multiple layers the  _Massive_ ’s mainframe would do the combining for us and we would just have to load the formula into the Synthesizer.” While he was still talking, Set already turned back to the screen, pushing buttons and keys with his spider legs helping.

Perplexed Jenna watched him work and grinned. As cruel as he could be from time to time, his curiosity and thirst for knowledge would always prevail.

 

Not an hour later they sat across each other, Set on the floor and Jenna on the couch. Between them on the table lay her old pack of cigarettes. Though now it was full. Jenna took it awestruck and pulled out two, one she handed Set and one she put in her mouth. Set tried to copy her but he had some troubles to hold it in place between his thin lips.

She waved at SIR who approached almost worried, looking up to his master.

    “Are you sure you won’t get harmed through this, sir?”

Set smiled at him whereby the cigarette dropped into his lap.

    “The scans were all okay.” He hushed the deadly robot and put the cancer stick back into place. “Apparently it’s only toxic to weak organisms, like humans.” He added slurred. SIR ejected his laser and jumped onto the table. Jenna held her cigarette into the scorching light and took a draw. It lit up immediately and she exhaled the smoke, a lot quicker than a few hours ago. Set followed her lead and promptly choked on the smoke. She gave him a half amused half pitiful glance while the Irk tried to catch his breath.

    “Take it easy, you’re not used to it. Try to puff it and not take it all the way in at first.” she lectured the coughing alien and took a deep, satisfying draw herself.

Set shot her an annoyed look and his eyes gleamed dangerously in the light of the blaze.  The thought that he might be stressed out from his meeting with the Tallest and maybe wanted to release some of that stress occurred Jenna, but the unruly cigarette kept him captivated a little longer.

He took another whiff, carefully this time but still all the way down, yet the cough attack didn’t start again. With a triumphing grin he blew the smoke out between his teeth.

Jenna didn’t bat an eye, took a draw and slowly exhaled the smoke through her nostrils. Set’s grin turned into a surprised “Oh!” what looked really funny and made her laugh.

    “Hah, that’s something you can’t do.” She smirked and grabbed the cup to tap the burned tip of her cigarette into the improvised ashtray.

Set pouted, brushing over his face where she had her stupid nose. Jenna sank back and looked dreamily and content out of the window. The stars were moving slowly past them like swarms of glowing fish.

Set used his spider legs to form a backrest and he relaxed visibly.

    “This… feels nice, somewhat. It tastes  _gross_  but it calms me… is that desired?”

She nodded.

    “Although the stuff is really bad for your health from the first draw and dying from it is quite painful, humans smoked it for hundreds of years… and other sorts of plants for even longer than that. The narcotic effect and the nicotine make it one of the most consumed drugs, and other than alcohol you can actually take it frequently without getting any severe side effects.” She told him and flicked another piece of ash into the cup. “To me… it means memories. A piece of home that somehow found its way to me, and I know it sounds stupid that I care that much for something that might kill me some day but… all my friends smoke. They got me into it, I admit, but you kind of bond over it.”

Set tilted his head to the side, a weird expression on his face.

    “Did you have many friends on your planet?” he asked and the cigarette glowed in the dimmed light as he sucked on it. Jenna looked out of the window, marveling a closer star.

    “I don’t have that  _many_  friends… but they’re close friends. We trust each other, are there for each other if they ever need help and can tell us anything without judging each other. But with my sister it’s a whole lot different… we have something like a mental connection. And we share the same… creators.” She added at his confused frown and cleared her throat to get rid of the painful stone in it. Then she looked at him. “What about you? Do you have someone you’d consider a friend?” she asked softly and honestly interested. If Set had any friends maybe  _they_  could tell her how to handle him.

But the Irk’s frown only deepened.

    “Back in my training there were two other recruits with whom I shared my rations now and then. We soon started covering each other’s backs in fights and developed tactics together. One of them already died during our training, the other one became a famous arms dealer until he got executed for gunrunning. It’s… dangerous to trust someone too much… there’s a constant fight for the Tallest’s favor in the Empire; you rather eliminate the competition than befriend them.” He closed and leaned forward to tap the ashes into the cup as well.

Jenna had crossed her legs and her chin resting in her hand as she nodded now, her expression serious and a bit commiserative as it appeared to Set. The little crease between her brows was there again. He had the feeling that she pitied him in some way, why he added: “But I still got SIR here; I entrust my life to him every single day.” The robot jumped at his side, puffing up his round metal chest in pride.

The human smiled. Good.

But her look turned probing yet again.

    “And what am  _I_  to you? You do trust me, too, don’t you?” she asked. Set already opened his mouth for an answer but paused in thought.

Granted, he trusted Jenna thus far as that he was sure she wouldn’t try to escape anymore, or murder him in his sleep (though he wasn’t  _that_  sure of the latter but that was something SIR was for). He had told her more about himself than anyone before. And he had come to the conclusion that she was far too unique to part with her. If the Tallest had decided to dispose of the human for all the trouble she’d caused…

At this point he suddenly refused to think further and that upset a part of him deeply; his antennae whipped through the air with a hissing sound as if trying to shake the thought. Remembering he still owed her a response he tilted his head to the other shoulder and shrugged.

    “Hmm… now that I think about it… you  _are_  a friend to me. But more like a partner, since we’re sharing more than just thoughts and each other’s company, right?”

At this she turned a deep red what made him grin. So she  _did_ feel alike, if not more.

Jenna was more than surprised by Set’s confession. He had practically called them a couple just now although she wasn’t sure if he was aware of the meaning or ascribed any importance to it at all.

She stubbed out the cigarette on the cup’s inner side and watched the Irk do the same, and burn his finger as he touched the embers. She came down from the couch and took his hand in hers to gently blow on the darkened spot on his fingertip, listening to how his angered hiss subsided into a deep chirr. Set wrapped his arms around her to pull the human onto his lap. A spider leg carefully brushed a strand of hair off her forehead before he placed a kiss on it.

“To be honest, I’m actually glad to have someone like you. Someone I can share everything with.” He breathed so quietly that she thought at first she might’ve misheard. Jenna raised her head and kissed him with a smile as he lifted her up in his arms, walking over to the bed.

 

_At the same time – The Tallest’s quarters_

 

Red narrowed his eyes, rubbing his chin with a sharp claw. Purple was still sitting idle on the lounger behind him, fingers decorated with little donuts like rings. He wasn’t exactly staring as intensely at the screen as his two-nanosecond older hatch-partner, but in no way less interested. His initial disgust for the human, as well as Red’s, had turned into a perverted curiosity; if nothing else, because they were as fascinated as Set had been upon first beholding her body. Something in the alien woke the desire to touch her, to dig claws into that soft flesh and to cause sweet ringing screams…

   “We shouldn’t allow our model-invader to get so namby-pamby… don’t you agree, Purple? I think he’s had enough of a  _vacation._ So, how about that last planet? You know, the one with the horrible squid-people?” – “Mhmm… he  _would_  need a lot of time slaughtering them… the last crew took almost a month cleaning up their colony planet.” Purple replied, licking clean his fingers. “We should send him off as soon as possible.”

Red nodded and grinned, hands crossed behind his back in a sly fashion.

 “And what about his…  _pet_?” the younger one added furtive. Red knew what he was thinking of, since he was thinking the same.

    “Well… if she starts getting hungry… she would have to come  _out_  sooner or later, don’t you think?”

Purple snickered.

    “Oooh, I think I  _like_  that idea…” he purred, wiping his hand dry on his robe. Red tilted his head, glancing over to the current events on the screen. His fingers twitched.

    “Wanna know what  _I_  think?” he muttered lowly, his breath shallow. Purple noticed this certain edge to his partner’s voice and looked up, his jaw slackening as he looked at the screen. Red turned around, his hand already fumbling with the collar of his robe. “I think this  _engrossing_  display has left me rather horny. What do you want to do about it?” he rumbled suggestively and his eyes already gleamed with lust.

Purple grinned widely, rubbing his chin in thoughts.

    “You know? I think I’ve got  _just_  the thing…”

   
  


_Set’s quarters – Two hours later_

 

Jenna sank back into the pillows, panting, and held onto Set’s nape. Her legs had turned into pudding it seemed and limply slumped off the alien’s hips as he leaned back to pull out of her. He moaned growling, bit her shoulder and caught her in his arms to draw her closer. Jenna freed her arms from the hug and put her hands on his head to gently massage the black stalks. The Irk shuddered under the touch and managed to pull her even closer to his overheated body.

    “Needed that, didn’t you?” she mumbled smiling, her cheek pressed to his forehead. Set buzzed, a soft vibration against her chest.

    “I never would’ve thought… that you could release so much stress at once… and feel so satisfied afterwards… I don’t want to move anymore.” He replied, catching his breath and with his nerves still numbed from the shock. Jenna laughed quietly next to his antennae what caused him to quiver slightly once again.

    “Welp, you don’t really need to. Until tomorrow, that is. Then I’d love something to eat.” She had just finished the sentence when Set was already fast asleep. She grinned, cautiously chuting away from him, feeling the well-known urge to sketch away. Moreover, she wasn’t tired enough to sleep just yet. Somehow she felt like Irken days were much shorter than those on Earth.

As quiet as possible she got her sketchbook from underneath the bed and opened an empty page. With her movements slightly stiff she sketched the contours of the sleeping Irk, before grabbing a black ball-pen to finish the sketch and add all the details.

It was fun to draw Set and when it was done a few hours later she almost would’ve sighed aloud. He looked so peaceful in his sleep, almost harmless. Nothing pointed to the beast he could be when awake. She finished adding shadows with a pencil, put the sketchbook back into her backpack, and nestled up to Set.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't support smoking in any way, it's a nasty habit and I should stop doing it!
> 
> But I thought it would be rather nice to be on an alien ship and find yourself some cigs when you're bored as hell x'D
> 
> This chapter was written so quickly~ I think I finally got the knack of it ^^
> 
> But the next chapter will get darker again... this is where everything starts breaking apart!  
> ♥


	18. Friends and Foes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again - this chapter is a tad too long for my liking but I didn't want to chop off that much D:

### \- 11 Friends and Foes –

 

_9 hours later – Massive – Set’s quarter_

 

What woke her this time was silence. It was too silent.

Confused Jenna opened her eyes and looked around, blinking at the sharp images. She still hadn’t gotten used to the fact that she was no longer short-sighted. Grinning drowsily she rolled over and froze.

Set wasn’t lying next to her anymore, as if he had left her side in the middle of the night. Even more confused and already a little worried she got up and put on a black tank top and her olive-green hiking pants before she searched the apartment. But Set was neither tinkering in the back nor was he in the small bathroom she had discovered yesterday. SIR was nowhere to be found either.

Now she was actuallyworried. They had talked about how far they trusted each other by now but she doubted that Set would leave her in here unsupervised and unguarded.

That was when she noticed a tablet on the couch table and took it. At a touch the screen activated, showing Set’s face; he looked excited, his eyes glistening and he seemed to be walking around in the room.

    “I got a new mission, don’t have time to wake you, gotta go  _now_. I’m not sure when I’m going to be back, but the Tallest said it’s urgent that I take care of this. There’re snacks in the shelf under the computer, and you can make water on your own every time you need it. SIR, where are my- ah, thanks! Oh, I gotta go, you’ll be a good girl and don’t do anything  _stupid_!” he grinned, the message ended and the display went black. Almost a minute long she stared at it, then her head jerked around and she looked outside for the open hangar where Set’s ship had docked.

It was still there.

She jumped to her feet at once, grabbed the belt with her suit and put it on around her waist while she darted for the door. Something wasn’t right! Something was very, very wrong about this!

Jenna sprinted down the short hallway into the elevator. She couldn’t make something of the alien symbols but she was sure she remembered the floor to the docks. If there was anything she might’ve called a secret talent it would have been her sense of direction. 

Alas, what Jenna didn’t know was the fact that the  _Massive_ ’s elevators were equipped with a scanning system which kept unauthorized life forms from any important areas as soon as the elevators weren’t operated by an authorized Irk.

Thus she was brought to the very next floor she, as an unauthorized individual, had access to: the  _Massive_ ’s bottommost deck where the kitchen and the drone’s sleeping quarters were located.

When the doors opened she paused puzzled due to the unfamiliar place she’d ended up in. But that nagging feeling that something wasn’t right kept her going, maybe there was another way to the docks.

Jenna activated her armor on the run; the light suit tightly encased her body like a second skin and suddenly she could pick up faint talking. Her boots were surprisingly silent even though she was storming down the narrow hallway. Taking a chance she turned round a corner to where the voice seemed to come from and ejected her headset from the neck piece of the armor. It pressed itself behind her ear and onto her throat.

The voice came closer and she was sure she would understand the language but she was still too far away to make out any words in particular.

Just as Jenna turned around a second corner she bumped into something small that was sent flying to the ground along with the human, squeaking shocked. She uttered an equally startled cry that was a whole lot angrier and jumped back on her feet.

Before her lay the smallest Irk she’d ever seen sprawled out on the floor. He bobbed up and just reached up to her knees. Her anger vanished; she was relieved she hadn’t killed the tiny creature!

When the little guy looked up to her his already pale, green skin turned almost white and he promptly plopped back on his butt.

    “B-by the a-alm-mighty Tallest! A gi-gi-gi-giant  _monsteralien_!” he whimpered and tried to crawl away from her. Jenna noticed the shrimpy spider legs, more like wires, that desperately tried to assist their owner in his escape.

Instinctively she sank down on her knees and helped the frightened Irk to get back up on his feet. Very carefully she tapped off the dust from his grubby, grayed uniform (it was one of those that Set had given her on his ship)

    “I sorry. I not see you. You okay?” she said and felt electric pulses practically tearing her brain and vocal chords apart, as the communication module tried to translate her thoughts into this alien language. So this translator worked different from the one she had used on the Prerk ship. She almost groaned at the pain it caused to talk.

She also was aware that her Irken was far from being flawless. But it worked; the tiny alien suddenly straightened his short antennae and looked at her with big, round, red eyes.

    “It… it talks and- this… armor… what’s… going on?!” his entire conception of the world seemed to fall apart in one fell swoop and he got dangerously pale again. Jenna grabbed his shoulders, shortly shaking him.

    “Me no time for explain all, me to docks, quickly! Me with invader Set!” she interrupted his stammering. If anything the little one’s eyes widened even more in pure horror.

    “I-i-inv-v-v-vader S-s-s- _Set_?! Y-you b-b-belong to-“ – “How do I get to docks? Please!” she begged frantically and all of a sudden a hand touched her shoulder and made her wheel around with an alarmed gasp.

 A severely scarred Irk stood behind her. One antenna was hanging limply and buckled from his head. Large scars that looked like they were the results of an acid attack ran over the actually really pretty face. The uniform was even muckier than that of the tiny Irk in front of her and strangely tailored, more like a dress. But despite his obviously maltreated appearance the Irk was almost as tall as the human. If he had stood upright and not crooked like an old man he would’ve been even taller than her.

As she looked at the strange Irk like that she noticed something but her opponent started talking and Jenna concentrated on the bright pink eyes.

    “You’re the alien he brought back, aren’t you? That one everybody’s talking about! Did you run away? Do you want to flee?”

Once she heard the voice her jaw slacked in fascination; so she had been right about that frame seeming a bit too feminine.

    “You… Irk… woman?” she asked the alien and she nodded with a slight frown as if she was used to hear that accompanied by an insult.

    “I am. My name is Ria… you want to get to the docks?” she returned and Jenna nodded hectically.

    “Yes, docks! Set has… mission, have to… farewell?” she wanted to  _scream -_  that stupid translator!

The female Irk named Ria blinked in confusion but then her eyes flashed understandingly.

    “Oh, I get it! You wanted to say goodbye! I’m sorry, but the ship just took off.” She replied with a pitying expression on her face and tilted her head curiously to the side. “Aren’t you scared of him? But you’d have to leastwise hate him for abducting you and planning to destroy your people… no? I don’t understand that…I should hate him if I were you.”

Jenna’s mouth was hanging open yet again. For an Irk, Ria was straight out of her mind! And indeed, the tiny Irk hissed scornfully from behind her legs as he used Jenna as a shield.

    “Shut up, Ria! You’re craziness will doom us all! Doom I tell you!”

Ria furrowed her brows and booted at the smaller one. Jenna shot her a curious glance. Was it possible that she had a form of defect that excluded her from the collective mind-control through the Tallest? She shook her head when she remembered Ria’s question.

    “Complicated. I hate him first, try to run. But he different. Not as bad as thinking.” She spoke up for herself. Ria’s eyes widened.

    “Is that so? Well, then you’re either really stupid or he brainwashed you. He’s a beast, the perfect invader. Don't you know anything about him?” Out of the blue she grabbed her hand. “Come with me. We can talk while I’m working! You’re going to tell me all about you and I help you with your Irken, okay?” – “Ria! Splooch said, no aliens in the factory!!” the tiny guy vociferated, his voice reaching painful heights, only to get another kick from the way taller Irk.

    “Oh pipe down, Nooch, will you?! So?” her eyes gleamed happily and she smiled widely what made her face extremely pretty despite her countless scars. Jenna eyed her. She wanted to learn more about that woman and why she was so completely different. Also it sounded quite nice to have some female company for a change.

    “Yes, please!” she said with an equally wide grin and squeezed the slender hand that still held hers.

Ria dragged her through many hallways until they stopped inside a small, cramped room. It smelled like burned plastic in here.

The Irk was talking nonstop, about that she had the bagging shift today, how annoying Nooch was and how glad she was to meet such a pretty alien who she could talk to.

Jenna sat down on a pile of boxes Ria pointed towards before she attended to an assembly belt and picked up a weak laser to fuse the bottom of a plastic bag together. The human recognized the familiar layout. Just yesterday she had wrestled a SIR-unit for one of these bags of chips.

    “So: what planet do you come from? What’s it like? Are there wild creatures?” she blurted out and Jenna had to laugh what made Ria’s intact antenna jerk. With a fascinated look she eyed the furred alien. “Oh my, what a nice laugh you have…” she muttered and smiled. Jenna chuckled and raised her hands.

    “Not many questions at once! I’m from Earth. Beautiful planet with lots… liquid… on Earth called ‘ _water_ ’.” Ria flinched slightly at the hard sound, “Has changing seasons, warm and cold. Many animals, some pets, some wild but endangered… by humans.” She tried to explain and the Irk nodded slowly.

    “Those humans must be another alien race threatening your planet?”

Now Jenna shook her head with a sad smile, pointing at herself.

    “Dominant species on Earth: human. My race is very greedy, wants to develop more. Better, faster, stronger. Are many, need more space. Animals have to go. I’m really sad because of that. Reason why invasion not so bad. Humans are bad for Earth; destroyed the planet as much as Irken would. Lasting longer would be nice but… it’s the same.” While she was talking she felt the words aligning in her head and making sense. Consciously she was still speaking a foreign tongue but it was as if the suit would feed her the language like a treat whenever she got something right.

Ria listened captivated, her hands still moving on their own.

    “But you like at least some of the other humans, don’t you? Some of them must be close to you. What do you think should happen to _them_?” she interposed and Jenna’s face clouded.

    “I don’t want to think. Think of them hurts. I miss them much. Above all I miss my family.”

The Irk raised a brow confused. “Creators, gave birth to me, raised me, love me very much. And my sister. Born two years later. Annoying sometimes but I love her either way. I still hope I can budge Set. He likes me and maybe will listen to me.”

Now Ria stopped working.

    “That would have been my next question: why don’t you behave like a kidnapped alien? Most I’ve seen had to be dragged before the Tallest in chains or cages! And you simply walk behind the invader who has snatched you from the ones you loved like he’d trained you. How would that even work without a brainwash or torture? You even live in his quarters, right? Does he keep you in a cage?”

Jenna felt pressed and even a bit offended. But Rias arguments seemed coherent and that  _irked_ her. Had the sex merely been a means to an end? To be honest Set had practically admitted that he'd asked for the authorization of his Code specifically to subdue her. And what about that whole other stuff, the trust and all? It couldn’t all be made up!

She shook her head fiercely.

    “No, he didn’t condition me nor did he torture me until I obeyed. He tried, though, but it didn’t work. We got used to each other and lived through situations that built up trust. I saved his life… twice, and he mine. I did have the opportunity to run away on multiple occasions… but I didn’t take it.” – “Pff, that’s more because of that  _thing_ , isn’t it?” Ria commented dry, pointing at the flashing, explosive collar around her neck.

For a horrible second Jenna thought it would detonate right now. Did it depend on how far away she was from Set? But when nothing happened she relaxed a bit and concentrated on the irritating woman.

    “No, not  _only_ because of it! If I truly had wanted to get away I would’ve let it kill me. But by now I… I came to like Set.” She tried again and raised her hands disarmed. That was all she could come up with for her defense. To her surprise the Irk started to chuckle.

    “Well, well… so the Tallest authorized Code 900 for him.” White, sharp teeth, some of them broken off, grinned at her.

    “What exactly is… Code 9000?” – “900” Ria corrected her and Jenna nodded thankful.

    “900… he told me about it but I didn’t really understand how it’s supposed to work… and how come you know so much about it when you’re slaving away in the kitchen?” the human returned, a tad too sharp.   
Ria flinched so hard her claws dug into the assembly line, cutting the surface deeply. Jenna covered her mouth with a hand right after her low blow. “I- sorry, I didn’t mean to…”

The female Irk waved her off, scratching the base of her mauled antenna.

    “It’s okay, you’re right after all… the different Codes of the Pak are feelings, instincts and certain patterns of thoughts that are switched off within smaller, lower Irken like inactive genes. Without a Pak – well, if we were able to live without a Pak – every invader could express these decoded behavioral patterns without being constrained by any restrictions. Take the Code 900, for example. The Irken sexual urge is one of the most repressed instincts of our species. We actually don’t need it anymore since all our progeny is created artificially by now. But that is no reason to restrain us in our needs, don’t you think? No, the restriction of urges and thought patterns serves only the control over the worker for the sake of the Empire.”

Jenna’s eyes widened. She knew this form of life from her own planet.

    “Like bees…” she mumbled. Ria tilted her head askingly. “It’s an insect species on my planet. They live in big colonies and the queen suppresses the worker's sexuality through pheromones, a scent. Are there any female Irken who could actually give birth?” she asked excited.

Ria shook her head, grieving.

    “No, not anymore. There are very few fertile left. And none of them has the authorization for 900. But to come back to your initial question: I know all this because I was a scientist ten years ago, experimenting with Paks and their insides to improve them. I was a highly esteemed member of the scientist circle on Irk; my research made it possible for me to visit many of the invaded planets - that’s how I got so tall - and of course my achievements were accordingly rewarded.” Her pink eyes took on a dreamy gleam.   
  
Jenna leaned forward.

     “What happened?” she asked quietly. Rias story must’ve had taken a drastic turn around if she ended up in here in this condition. The Irk lowered her gaze lost in memories, looking down at her callused, scarred hands.

    “I…  _yes_ … I found a way to bypass the coding of my Pak… how… I can’t recall anymore. All of a sudden, I was free! It was not a physical freedom, the Pak was still attached to my back and the Tallest could’ve killed me with one judgement. But my  _thoughts_ … all these feelings; at first I thought I was going mad! I didn’t understand what was happening to me, until I accepted that my sensitivity was  _normal_  and not the other way round. I finally understood what it was like for an abducted alien, I understood the sorrow and grief a whole race felt upon their doom, was confronted with the concept of  _love_  for the first time in my life… and I realized that the Empire’s way was wrong and unnatural and we had to stop right now!”

Ria had started pacing through the cramped room. “I asked my leaders for an audience and proposed my perception, sure they would comprehend my discovery as the fully authorized leaders they were.” She suddenly stopped in her walk, looking at Jenna.

“But they couldn’t… they called me a Defect, wrong, and a liar! They brought me before the Control Brain and it erased my status, my reputation… and my identity. It coded me anew but they didn’t notice that it was futile, that the Codes didn’t affect me anymore… The Tallest had no idea it was even possible to be free, as I realized in pain. They were less coded, yes, but not completely severed from the boundaries like I was. Even the Tallest aren't true sentient beings… but I don’t know why or by whom they were coded… why...”

A warm hand touched her boney shoulder and broke her bedlam rambling. The human looked at her with such sadness, and a speechless wrath that she felt all warm and understood. It was a nice feeling.

    “I… I am so sorry, Ria. I knew the Tallest were cruel. But that they were downright monsters… now I am  _sure_  they sent Set on this strange mission to make me starve or die in some other way just to get rid of me because they fear I have a bad influence on him!” she growled furious. Ria’s look grew darker, somewhat lost in reverie.

    “Or they want to kill  _him_  because they fear he might’ve already changed too much through you, thinks different or more independent and thus poses more of a threat to them than a utility.” The Irken woman replied quietly. Jenna felt fear creeping into her heart.

    “What can I do, Ria? What if he won’t come back…” she choked, trying to calm her racing heart. Ria shook her lightly.

    “He  _will_ come back to you. I observed Set during my experiments along with others of his unit. He is even tougher and more tenacious than you might think, and if it’s true what you said, if he really sees more in you than merely a test subject, then he has more to live for than just his life and the Empire’s sake. But I think it would be better if you stayed in his quarter, especially if the Tallest  _are_ planning to separate you from Set. I can bring you food whenever the chance occurs. You have a slave-brand, right? Then it should be no problem to get you back to the apartment.”

Suddenly a speaker cracked and a nasal sounding voice squawked out of it.

    “Ria! The Tallest demand fresh snacks on the Comm Bridge! Donuts and soda and you better not screw this up!” The transmission ended and Ria bared her teeth at the ceiling.

    “Figures… you’ll stay with me and hide in the service tunnel until I’m back; after that I’m going to take you back to your room.” She ordered Jenna while already grabbing a tray and piling bags with donut on top of it.   
  
Soft-footed and with her heart pounding in her throat she followed the Irk when she finally headed off through a narrow, dark tunnel. She felt a familiar panic rise. What if they were already aware that she had left the quarter and was now wandering around here? Was it a trap?

Despite her growing uneasiness she followed Ria through the countless tunnels. She had decided that she trusted the intelligent woman more than anyone else on this boat, including Set. She had been the first person whose thoughts and feelings felt familiar and pure. Ria had also reminded her of the fact that she was indeed still a prisoner and could end up sliced open at any time if the Tallest, or even Set, were to lose their interest in the strange creature.

Ria lead her safely through the service ways without meeting another drone. Jenna noticed soon that it was going up, way up. The Irk hurried her along.

    “If I take too long they’ll make life unpleasant for me. Well, not that they could do much more…” They hurried on until Ria stopped in front of a hatch. “This is the exit to the Bridge. You stay here and wait for me to come back. Do  _not_  come out under any circumstances, understood?” pink eyes pierced sternly into her's and Jenna nodded quickly although her heart was about to burst through her chest. Ria smiled cheerily. “Don’t you worry; I’ll be back faster than you think.” With this she pushed against the hatch and slipped through the opening. Jenna skidded closer and crouched down to peek through a ventilation slit.

Ria moved in the background, the two leaders floated a hand’s breadth over the ground in the center of the command bridge and were watching a stellar map not unlike the one on Set’s ship. Dozens of Irken sat around them in different uniforms and apparently operated parts of the space ship.

Now Ria approached the Tallest, bowed down, only towered by the guards and the Tallest themselves but still so much taller than the regular service drones that you couldn’t do otherwise but notice her.

The Tallest must’ve noticed her as well; they exchanged a look so sinister that Jenna felt rage seething hotly in her guts. Ria looked down to the ground and couldn’t see how Purple silently floated behind her. When she took another step he swiftly tripped her up!

The tray toddled and it looked like she would manage to balance it out, but eventually it overbalanced and fell to the ground rattling. Donuts rolled over the floor in every direction and the techs snickered maliciously. Red just crossed his arms in front of his chest.

Ria stood still where she had tripped and tried to cower even more. Purple right up began to yell at her, what a miserable, clumsy thing she was, that she was jeopardizing the whole Empire with her disgusting defects and why again he was allowing her to live. Up to this point Ria didn’t seem frightened at all, and simply let the wave of insults wash over her with a stoic expression.

But suddenly an extended spider leg whipped across her face and crimson blood splashed on the buffed metal floor with a wet sound. The female Irk was thrown back by the sheer force and staggered for a second, but didn’t fall. She didn’t make a sound, either.

In her hideout Jenna gasped and had to cover her mouth to not shout out in shock. The hard material of her armor collided painfully with her teeth.

Purple reached back for another blow and she thought – hoped – that Ria would dodge it; she didn’t.

The next clout tore her arm open down to the muscles. A teeth-baring grin was all she returned. Another strike and another, faster and faster the cuts hailed down on the crooked woman till she suddenly caved in, sinking on one knee and shielding her body with her hands. But the Tallest didn’t let up on her for one second. He ejected a second spider leg to push her down to the floor completely.

The already blood-crusted arm rose almost upright, ready to end it.

Red gave a sly grin, but effaced himself, meanwhile the face of his hatching-twin twisted into a maniacal mask as he let his arm shoot down on that abhorrent creature.

Something crashed into the tallest of all Irken with such force that he lost control over his levitation for a moment and hit the ground. Or rather: he floated about two meters far and touched the floor with the tip of his foot, yet there was a shocked gasp audibly coursing through the rows of the techs present.

Jenna caught her balance and stood protectingly over Ria, clenching her fists ready to fight. Purple wheeled around and stared at the alien, so very puny compared to him, that had have the audacity to touch one of the mighty Tallest, no, to downright  _attack_  him!

Red’s eyes were widened in disbelief and his arms had risen in start and surprise.

Why hadn’t they heard the human? Why didn’t the guards sound the alarm in time?! They had been aware that she was coming this way with Ria, after all they had watched her over the cameras!

The human stared warily at both of them. Beneath her the severely injured Irk whined, pulling on her leg.

    “N- no, don’t… they… they’ll kill you… kneel, kneel down! I… beg you!” But Jenna ignored her pleading and even dared to straighten herself some more.

    “Done… I’m just  _done_ with all of this! This whole knuckling under and this… this goddamn cruelty! Not even the lowest creatures on my planet are this despicable! A being of majesty and true power wouldn’t need to rely on violence to lead their people!” she opened her hands and raised them a little, making herself the unarmed target. “I am a slave to invader Set and thus a part of this Empire now! So show me how much power you got!” she challenged the Tallest and Purple’s eyes all but fell out of his skull as he stared at her fuming with wrath.

    “Ooh, just you wait, you little-“, he hissed and lunged forward but Red held him back, a metal arm knocked slightly against his Pak.

    “ _Indeed_ , my dear.” The Tallest purred with a shark-like grin. “You do belong to invader Set. But  _unfortunately_ he is currently on a very important mission and won’t be back all that soon. That’s why he can’t discipline your highly inacceptable behavior himself. Moreover…” his voice turned more and more furtive and his antennae cut through the air sharply as he reached out a claw to grab Jenna’s chin, his two hook-like fingers close to her throat.

Her heart failed a few beats before it started pounding in her chest like a hammer and she braced for a strike that didn’t come.

Instead Red went on: “Do you know what you did to him with this stupid act of heroism? With your terroristic attack you didn’t only drag his name and reputation through the mire, no… I think the way the Control Brain would evaluate the events Set already doesn’t have a name or rank anymore! Do you understand that?” he tilted his head, perking up his antennae as if he was eagerly listening. Behind him Purple hardly stifled a sinister laugh.

Jenna gulped harshly. This had been an even worse idea than she had imagined at first. She hadn’t meant to pull Set into this!

“But, there  _is_ a way to pay for your crimes and redeem Set’s good name. He wouldn’t even need to hear about all of this… I think that would be an appropriate compensation for the turmoil you’ve caused… don’t you think, Purple?” Red carried on and Purple stepped up behind her.

She couldn’t move when he put one hand under her jaw to expose her throat; the other one danced over the arch of her breast. Paralyzed from shock and horror she could just stare.

    “Hmm… I could’ve easily gotten hurt  _very_  badly… I don’t think that  _once_  will quite cut it; also I want to first inspect the goods if you catch my drift… she is so  _small…_ ” the other Irk replied with a feigned whiny voice.

She still couldn’t move a muscle. Not even when they dragged her along and left the bridge.

Suddenly she recognized the quarter of the Tallest and before she could find her bearings Purple had already wrested the belt from her, and her armor, the only real shield between herself and the cruel warlords, was simply gone.  Now her stupor fell off as well and she stumbled backwards, away from them; but Red was quicker, had expected it and caught her with a metal arm closing around her neck. Jenna was pulled back brutally and tried frantically to free herself from the claws that dug into her throat.

Red pulled her closer and twisted her arm onto her back that her shoulder gave a dangerous scrunch and she couldn’t keep a pained scream. Purple’s antennae perked up in glee.

    “Oh, she’s quick to scream! Now I like her even more.” He sneered and rubbed his hands together like a psychopath. Red – Jenna merely reached up to his hip – bent over her to let both his hands stroke over her body. He stopped at her breasts and kneaded them roughly.

    “Huh… so soft… surely feels even better without that shirt.”

 Were it just her nerves or did his voice sound huskily? She fought back against his grasp and kicked at him. When she landed a hit Red growled angrily and clacked his tongue at Purple. He came closer to grab her legs with his spider legs.

    “But even more unruly! How the hell did Set put up with that?” Purple asked as they threw the writhing and struggling human onto the lounger, immediately pinning her down with their spider legs.

    “Hmph, maybe he’s just into wild animals.” Red replied arid and his hatching-twin snickered.

    “Eeew…”

Without her suit and the translator Jenna didn’t understand a word they said although she didn’t need any words to know what they were up to. If she didn’t want to get raped again (and probably killed in the process) she had to act, now!

Just as Red was about to pull the top off of her and Purple made a greedy grab for her pants she felt the spider legs loosen for a second. On the spur of the moment she used all her strength to shoot up like she had when Set was torturing her with the cables. She turned hands and feet out of the claws that were supposed to keep her in place and rolled off the couch in the same motion, landing on her feet.  With two sprints and a dive she reached her belt and put it on hectically.

Purple gave a startled shout, Red hissed. Both jabbed at her with sharp metal arms but Jenna activated the translator and began to scream, to beg for her life.

   “ _No, please stop!! I’m begging you, I’ll do_ everything _but… oh god, not_  this!” tears streamed down her face, her voice was shaking and she couldn’t breathe from disgust and panic.

Both the Tallest stopped, exchanging glances. Purple’s was disappointed but Red had a triumphing grin on his face.

“I- I’ll do  _everything_  you want, I swear… just… please don’t make me go through  _that_  again…  _please_!” she cried out, feeling defiled, and feared they wouldn’t take a pass on the opportunity to break her.

But for a wonder Red just grinned, contacting the guards outside; then he shook his head.

    “You should’ve really considered our generous offer… Now there’s only the  _traditional_  way to redeem Set’s reputation.”

She didn’t like that grin at all, it seemed even more malicious than before.

    “Wh- what would that be?” she asked timid and sniffed. The Tallest inspected his claws as if they were of much more interest than the fate of the creature before him.

    “Hm? Oh, just an Irken pit fight. You must prove your strength against a series of incredibly fierce opponents. Should you refuse to fight or yield before the fight is over Set will be executed upon his return. Do you accept these terms with all their possible outcomes?”

Jenna swallowed the lump in her throat, closed her eyes and nodded slowly, just as the guards entered the room and grabbed her arms.

Red gave her an almost regretting look, as if he was about to trash a snack that had been on the floor for more than three seconds. “What a shame… I really would’ve wanted to know what it’s like to do the things he does to you.” The Tallest waved at the guards and they dragged her away.

    “Why the hell did you do  _that_? Damn, we could’ve had so much more fun than in a long time.” Purple groused. Red shrugged.

    “She would’ve snuffed it anyway, so we wouldn’t exactly have  _that much_  of her. Besides; I was rather in the mood for the usual than risking catching some interstellar diseases.” He added with a purr, possessively putting a hand on Purple’s hip who giggled.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Never punch the Tallest and then stand around idly...  
> they don't play nice ._.


	19. Friends and Foes - Pt. 2

### \- 11 Friends and Foes –

#### Part 2

  
Jenna was thrown into a dark prison cell. The guards activated electrically charged plasma-bars behind her. She chuted towards the farthermost wall and held her aching arm while she tried to peer through the darkness that was barely lit by the faint light of the bars. She didn’t notice the tears that were still running down her cheeks.

She had made a mess of everything. She’d fucked up  _big time_. It had been so obvious! The Tallest were planning to kill one of them, either Set or her… probably her as well once Set was dead.

Suddenly she noticed a frame lying beside her and slid farther away cautionary. Who knew what aliens were locked up with her sharing a similar fate as her own. Maybe they would appreciate the chance to warm up before their actual fight.

The creature’s shape trembled from a hoarse cough and now Jenna looked more closely. When her collar flashed up again she spotted two antennae, one of them dangerously mangled.

    “Ria!” she gasped and skidded closer to the female Irk on hands and knees. Her fingers found her shoulder and felt warm blood. Woken from the pain Ria flinched and whimpered silently. Then she finally turned her head around, agonizingly slow as it appeared to Jenna, and her eyes widened in terror.

    “No…” she breathed throatily. “It can’t be… why… are you  _here_? I- “

The human brushed her cheek with a soft hand, emitting a comforting sound.

    “Shhh, Ria… don’t speak. You’ve lost so much blood. The  _almighty_  Tallest…” she huffed disdainfully, “made a  _deal_  with me to redeem Set’s honor… but this deal would’ve only worked over my dead body!” she shuddered visibly at the thought of what she had just escaped and Ria made a compassionate face before her expression distorted again from pain. But there was something else in her eyes: Remorse, guilt and a deep desperation.

    “It’s… it’s all my fault!” the Irk suddenly blubbered out and curled up. “If I just had managed to catch that stupid t-tray… you- you wouldn’t have been sentenced to death!” The rest of what she had wanted to say got lost in a convulsive sobbing. Jenna sat down beside her and gently brushed over her head. The alien’s hand searched for hers and she entwined her fingers with Ria’s.

    “Don’t be silly, Ria. You know very well that it’s my fault alone. If I had listened to you and stayed hidden you would’ve gotten away with a black eye and I would already be back in Set’s quarter. But… being the impulsive hot-head I am I let my feelings get the better of me and I barged in. I’m the one to blame that we’re now stuck in this cell. Can I do anything for you?” she added worried as Ria’s fingers dug sharply into her palm.

    “They’re going to let you fight, aren’t they?” she whispered in sudden realization and looked at her with wide eyes. “You are sentenced to fight in the arena, right?” she looked so guilt-ridden that Jenna felt another wave of tears.

    “Ria, you- you’re in a lot of pain, there must be something I can do to help-“ – “No, no no no, I’m gonna be… fine…” she groaned when she sat up shaking and nodded. “But I can help  _you_! They didn’t tell you who your opponent is going to be, did they?” she replied and Jenna shook her head nervous.

“Well, I know who it’s going to be! They wouldn’t break with this tradition!” Ria pulled herself up at the wall and stood there swaying, but she stood upright.

Jenna got up herself, worried the injured Irk might fall over. But Ria already paced in front of the bars, scratching her chin in thoughts. Then she stopped and gave Jenna’s armor a look-over. Luckily enough the guards had let her keep it. “Your suit looks tough enough, at least for those little pests.”

Jenna made a half worried, half confused face.

“You’re going to encounter a pack of defective SIR units. Those things have a mighty dent in there CPUs and attack everything that moves, or is organic. They will assault you with their weapon systems but you can use this to your advantage. Just dodge their attacks and make sure they start blowing up each other. Moreover you can confuse them with fast movements.”

She sank back against the wall exhausted and clutched her still slightly bleeding arm while catching her breath. “You… you  _must_  win… take just one of them down… and check their heads… If you’re lucky you might find a… blade or… laser.” Her voice faded and Jenna caught Ria before she hit the ground.

    “ _Alright_ , alright! O- okay… I will win this, Ria! And after that we’re both getting out of here! When Set comes back I’m going to tell him everything! I just hope he’s jealous enough to get really furious when he hears what the Tallest almost did to me…” Carefully she lowered the Irk down to the ground and wiped her sweaty face.

Her Pak gave high whirring sounds and Jenna was quick to move away from it; she had been shocked enough times by now. Yet it sounded as if something was being injected into her body, and Ria actually sighed relieved.

“Wh- what’s that?” Jenna asked and dared to come closer again.

    “There’s a liquid coursing through our Pak’s. It’s like its fuel, and it helps us to overcome diseases or injuries. A strong elixir yet it can do so much more… I worked on perfecting its formula back then… In high doses or in a purified form it serves as a stimulant and if it’s used on alien life forms its effects can be unpredictable. I… I think I’ll just… sleep… a bit.” Ria muttered and closed her eyes.    

 Jenna sat by her side a while and listened to her deep, steady intakes before she decided to get up and warm up her muscles with some stretches. Her body still ached from the last days.

She lowered onto her hands and toes and started off with some pushups. But they felt too easy with the suit on and she activated the armor’s interface in her left palm like Set had showed her, studying the glowing symbols. They were stylized pictograms and a few Irken words. She tried one that looked like two overlaying triangles. Maybe she could lower the suit’s support so it’d require more own effort to move.

She only managed to finish the next pushup under strain, the armor suddenly felt about 40 pounds heavier. Although Jenna doubted that a bit of strength training would improve her fitness within a few hours, but what else was she supposed to do?

 

After a couple hours she rested by the wall and was settling her thoughts when two guards approached the cell and shut off three of the bars. In their hands they held spears with dangerously sparking ends. Jenna got up and followed them on their harsh gesture.

Ria suddenly looked up, as if she had been waiting for them, reaching out to the guards.

    “Hey, I want to watch! I want to watch that bitch getting torn to pieces by the SIR units!” she rasped with such hatred in her voice that Jenna recoiled bewildered. The guards exchanged a glance and shrugged. One of them gave a quiet order and a screen appeared at the end of the rows of cells. The other prisoners – mostly Irken but Jenna was sure she had seen another type of alien, one with  horn-like appendages on their head – leaned eagerly forward. To watch a fight in the arena was probably a welcome change.

    “Move it!” the guard to her left growled and shoved the human along. Both of them were around two meters tall and she staggered forward from the push. But then she decided to risk a look over her shoulder to Ria. She smiled and nodded at her. Relieved Jenna realized the Irk had just pulled off this show to get to observe the fight.

The guards escorted her through the maze like prison wing to an elevator. The floor in front of it was completely filthy with dirt, and sticky. In the light of the lift Jenna recognized all kinds of blood, a greater part being Irken, but there was something muddy, almost earth-like. She asked herself what the arena would look like. Sand or even actual  _ground_  would be a huge advantage over sleek metal.

The doors opened again and deafening clamor hit her like a physical wall. Jenna raised a hand to block out the glaring floodlight and noticed compact ranks cramped with Irken who were jeering, shouting and punching the air, from the corner of her eye. With the tip of her boot she felt the ground under her feet and dug into a loamy floor. Good, she would be able to run.

The guards pushed her again and Jenna fell onto her knees; the crowd laughed while the human bobbed up, dusting off her armor.

Then the Tallest came floating down into the arena on a hovering platform, casually waving at the wild crowd, and descending to something that could’ve easily been a box in a theatre.

Red raised a hand and it went silent.

    “Human creature, your terroristic assault on almighty Tallest Purple” dramatic gasping and boos from the crowd, “is one of the gravest offences against the Irken Empire ever committed by an alien life form, and would usually be punished with  _death_ at once. But since you, as a branded slave of famous invader Set, belong to the Irken Empire, you shall receive a chance at redemption. Should you survive in this arena the honor of your master shall be restored to its former glory. Do you accept the court’s verdict and all of its consequences?” he added furtive, expecting her to yield right here and thus sentence Set to death to save her own life.

But the alien straightened herself to full height, clenching her fists, and jutted her chin forward.

    “I accept your conditions! I will redeem my master’s reputation and show you our might!” she shouted with steady voice. The spectators mumbled about, and she thought she could hear single cheers for her. But Red shrugged unimpressed.

    “We’ll see about that… Release the SIR units!”

The crowd went nuts again and Jenna took on a stand ready to fight, taking a deep breath.

On the other side of the arena a gate lowered into a dark hall. For a second it went dead silent, and a pair of red eyes lit up. Then another one. And another.

In the split of a second ten killer robots dashed for her with a horrifying noise!

Jenna tried to keep them all in sight but her body already froze from fear and her settled thoughts scattered panicked in the face of certain death embodied in this swarming mass. Something shiny flew at her and it broke her paralysis.

A blade, as long as her hand pierced the dirt an inch from her foot and Jenna ran off. The SIR units came after her screaming but she could barely hear them over the brawling of the spectating Irken. Her breathing and the sound of her boots stomping over the ground lead her.

The wall of the arena came closer quickly; too high to jump over it even with the suit, besides, it was crowned by an electric fence.

But she had no plans to escape the fight. As she was about to smash into the wall she pushed off the ground, taking two steps up the wall. Before gravity could overcome her momentum, she dealt the wall a powerful kick and sailed through the air. Her backflip was anything but perfect but at least it worked out and she managed to land on one foot. Carried by her unexpectedly high velocity she    slid on over the ground trying to keep her balance.

Quickly she looked up, hearing a sharp metal clang at the same time.  The pack of crazed robots had been so close on her heels that they didn’t even have the chance to slow down and all of them crashed into the wall. The ones in the front stayed down unconscious but the ones in the back would recover a lot sooner.

Jenna roared, tensed up all muscles in her legs and dash-sprinted so powerfully that her boots left holes in the ground. She felt the suit’s energy catapult her forward and she swung her right leg back on the last step like a striker with clear line of fire on the goal. The SIR unit she was aiming for turned around when she shredded him to bits. Her foot severed his head from the rest of his body and stomped the rest to scrap in the same step. Jenna had planned to tear all of them apart right on the spot but her eyes caught something within the flying head that made her lean forward again and run on after it. The spectators oohed and aahed at the well-played tactic that was too good to deny it.

The human missed the sudden enthusiasm of the crowd completely. Her only real chance to get out of this alive bounced over the floor 50 yards away and she could already hear the shrieking of the nine other killer robots behind her.

An explosion made her stagger but she didn’t dare to slow down but ran even faster, her breath already starting to burn in her throat; the SIR units were throwing grenades at her! She gave a furious cry and wheeled around to break. Like a runner going for Home Plate she slid through the dust on the side of her leg, making a grab for the severed robot head. Her hands, sweating under the armor, shook but she managed to snatch the protruding object and ripped it off its spider-leg.

Jenna sprung back on her feet and twirled around, leveling the big gun in her hands, her open hair blocking the view for a second.

She pulled the trigger.

The recoil was so heavy that her arm painfully bounced back in its joint but the result of the shot made her ignore the pain. With a howling noise the glaringly bright orb shot between the fast-approaching robots and hit the ground. The following explosion carried Jenna off her feet and threw her back into the dirt. The suit cushioned the fall but her unprotected head collided so hard with the ground that her vision blackened for a second. She couldn’t hear anymore, only a dull droning. The next thing she could distinct clearly was the scent of burnt and molten metal and the hot pieces of it biting into her face.

Disoriented she shook her head and wiped her cheeks to get rid of the shrapnel. A cloud of dust had covered the arena and while her hearing came back unnoticed it stayed quiet around her. Jenna stood up as quickly as she managed to, and fell back on her knees; she bobbed up again, pushing herself off the ground and took a few faltering steps, scanning her surrounding with wide eyes. Her heart was racing in her chest and her breath was such an exhausted, thin whistling that she feared it might stop all along.

The dust settled and she had to blink against the light again. Her body was aching and the pain seemed to be spreading inside her body from everywhere; but she was alive. The manic SIR units were no more than a molten pile of scrap metal, giving off wisps of smoke and steam. She did it.

And the Irken stared at her. With mouths open, yet speechless, they looked down to the human who had just eviscerated a whole pack of uncontrollable SIR units within a few seconds without losing a single limb.

Jenna looked further around, turned to every side, unwittingly clutching her right arm. Finally her gaze fell on the Tallest and she froze. Both almighty Tallest had risen from their seats staring at her with wide eyes. She returned the stare silent. Slowly she raised her left hand as high as she could and gave them the finger.

Since Irken didn’t know this gesture they simply concluded that this had to be something like the human’s sign of victory. The arena burst with noise as the spectators jumped from their seats displaying all kinds of reactions. Most of them broke into rapturous cheering, amazed by this new form of pit fight. Some threw snacks at the human that had dared to escape death. A few among them, mostly experienced invaders and higher ranked Irken with more Codes authorized, simply held the human’s skills in battle in veneration, admiring her combative spirit in the face of certain doom.

But Jenna only had eyes for the one Tallest who pierced her with his blood-red eyes. And she grinned back.

Red seemed to lose his cool for a split second when suddenly an idea struck him, she could practically see it. His lips curled into a wide grin as he raised his hand and it went quieter.

    “What a fight! I am impressed, human!”

Purple shot him a worried glance, convinced his partner had lost his mind. “Never before did any alien life form come out of this arena victorious. Set would be very proud of you, I’m sure. And look: it would seem you’ve made some fans amongst the spectators!” he turned his attention to the Irken who were still cheering, his sharp teeth bared shark-like. “What do you think? Do you want to see her fight one more round? How about she fights a Hresh? Or a Florgh?”

The thunderous applause that followed caused Jenna’s insides to twist nauseatingly. She shook her head in shock and stepped forward. Her despair had to be written all over her face, Purple was now grinning just as widely as Red.

    “No… no, you said I would be free to go! Set’s honor is restored, right?! You  _lied_  to me!” she screamed up to them, her voice cracking, but Red just shot her an amused glance.

    “Oh, don’t worry. Set’s honor has been restored to its former glory… if anything even greater than ever. You may belong to  _him_ ; however I think he wouldn’t mind if we  _borrow_  you for some time, right? After all we’re his beloved leaders. And he’ll get another slave from us in case you die, as compensation. Or two… or as many as he wants,” His voice was sharp and full of the satisfaction that he would win this fight, “as long as the fans get their event. Oh, and by the way: We both know what happens should you refuse, hm?” he added on the quiet and winked at her.

The cheering and bawling overwhelmed her, grew like a storm in her mind. All power left her legs and the armor collapsed as she sank to her knees, shaking her head.

    “No… no, please!” Jenna whispered anxious and didn’t notice how the guards grabbed her arms to pull her towards the elevator.

Something in her snapped, she shot forward, sweeping both guards off their feet, and lunged at the canon she had dropped.

Startled screams went through the crowd as the human leveled the fusion-canon at the Tallest with wild eyes blazing with rage. Purple shrieked and took cover behind Red who didn’t even bat an eye. Before Jenna could pull the trigger a vicious shock jerked through her spine, electricity engulfing her whole body in white pain, and threw her to the ground. Her arms and legs were still twitching spastically when the guard pulled his spear out of her back.

    “Look at that will to fight! She knows how to build up tension! The next round will be at the same time, snacks and refreshments are on us!” she heard Red call from far away and the following roar of the crowd before it went dark around her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you guys so much for 400 hits! I never expected this to get any attention! ♥  
> So, yeah a little extra update for you :)


	20. Rage

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Check out the C U R I O S I T Y playlist on 8tracks!   
> http://8tracks.com/thetruemek/c-u-r-i-o-s-i-t-y

###  **\- 12 Rage –**

_A few minutes later - Massive - Prison hallway_  
  
Her unconsciousness didn’t last long – Jenna came to as the guards were dragging her along the prison hallway back to her cell. It was terribly loud in here… what was going on?

She lifted her head under strain and looked around; deafening cheers confronted her, many of the imprisoned actually applauded her and hollered all over the place. But she didn’t feel any solace or elation despite this sincere admiration. She just felt painfully empty, hopeless. Dead. As if the SIR units had mangled her and not the other way around.

She was again thrown into her cell ungently, sprawling face down on the floor since her arms and legs simply refused to break her fall. Maybe she was lucky and the impact would kill her or send her back into the welcoming darkness.

But the smarting pain in her skull argued against it, as did the astonishingly gentle touch of cool hands on both sides of her temples. Jenna stayed down on the ground, waiting until the joyful jeering of her inmates had quieted and they took up their everyday life as prisoners. She waited till no one was paying any attention to her anymore.

Then she cried. It started with a tremble running through her body, a shaking breath and finally a weak whine. She wasn’t even able to cry anymore.

Ria carefully turned her over onto her side, resting Jenna’s head in her lap, all the while brushing down the back of her head to her nape that was still pricking from the electric shock. Chirping quietly she tried to calm the distraught young woman who now curled up, clutching her free hand.

    “I- I did e-everything they w-wanted! I- I did it… why? Why did they do this, Ria? Why are they  _still_  trying to k-kill me?!” she cried out between her sobs and hid away her face behind her hair. The Irk stopped shortly in her mantra and sighed tired.

    “I had… suspected something like that would happen. But I didn’t want to tell you or otherwise you wouldn’t have made it through the first round. Sshh… listen to me.” She reached under her chin and raised it up so that Jenna had to look into her eyes. “You  _have to_  win. You have to  _survive_! The connection Set and you share could be strong enough to shatter the Tallest and the Empire, and bring peace to the Irken race and freedom to the galaxy! I don’t know how or why, but I sense something in you, the power to change everything!” she hissed under her breath and her pink eyes glowed faintly in the cell’s bars.

Jenna gave her a concerned look, afraid Ria was already losing it… she laughed humorlessly.

    “And how the hell am I supposed to change anything when I’m going to  _die_? You’re wrong, Ria. I can’t change anything of this! This… this is too much for me to handle… it’s just out of my league! I never fought for my life before! I just wanna go home…” she whimpered, the fear of the pain that was to come already squeezing her frantically beating heart.

Ria shook her head and smiled.

    “You’re not going to die… I’ll make sure of that. I’m going to do everything in my power to help you. We have to make sure that you survive till Set returns… when he sees what they’ve done to you it will offend him immensely… even hurt him; he won’t take it lightly. Now let’s see…”

She took off her suit and disconnected the translator with clever fingers from the armor’s neckpiece for Jenna to keep it. She began to examine her body and although she couldn't possibly know anything about human anatomy Jenna let her proceed. Apparently she was only looking for superficial injuries anyway.

“Do you feel pain anywhere in particular? Can you describe it to me?” she mumbled, cautiously palpating her right arm.

    “Yes… that arm… I think the shoulder joint might’ve born most of the canon’s recoil… ah!” Jenna sucked the air in between her teeth but Ria stayed calm while she examined the shoulder concentrated.

    “It’s not dislocated… and it doesn't seem to be broken either. However, you should give it some rest for the time being… if only we had something to cool it with.” She added sighing frustrated since they wouldn’t get anything in quite some time.

“Are there any more injuries? What about your back?”

Jenna turned around cross-legged and leaned forward to allow Ria a better look at her back. She pulled her top up to her shoulders and palmed the location where the guard had gotten her.

“The spear didn’t go through the armor but it overloaded the suit’s circuits. It should be fine after a restart, though. And the burning should be gone after a few days, as long as the suit doesn't overload in the same spot again, otherwise it’ll leave scars.” Ria closed her results and Jenna flinched.

    “What burns? I can’t feel anything…” she asked alarmed already twisting her left arm back to touch her back. Faintly she could feel hot lines under her fingers. She growled and turned back around. “Did you get to know what they’re gonna throw at me next?”

To her surprise Ria nodded.

    “They’ll send in two Vorn. Four-legged animals of prey. They have sharp, long claws and giant jaws spiked with teeth. But they’re not very fast.” She stood up to pace around, one hand on her hip, the other one kneading her chin. “This time you won’t get any weapons so you have to kill them with your bare hands.”

Jenna looked down at the belt.

    “What about my suit? I could try to adjust the settings that it focuses the power on my fists when I punch them…” she suggested and the Irk paused while the intact antenna perked up.

    “That’s great! Show me how the suit can be adjusted.”

Jenna wrapped the belt around her hip again and activated it. She felt an almost unpleasant tingling as the plates encased her body again, especially on her back. With a push on the plate covering her left palm she opened the interface and Ria bent over it intrigued.

“Impressive! Can you actually read Irken?”

The human shook her head but she waved her off. “It’s okay, I’m going to set it up for you and teach you one or more things.”

 

This time they had more time to prepare Jenna. Ria helped her with the suit, calibrated it anew and adjusted the power-amplifier so that her arms were now twice as strong as her legs. Jenna tested the new strength-allocation at the back wall of their cell. Her punch left a massive dent in the metal which was immediately repaired by the maintenance system of the ship. Ria seemed satisfied with the result and instructed Jenna to move the suit a bit more.

Because of the greater amount of energy necessary to power her arms, the strain she had to put up to finish her pushups had increased as well, but she trained on.

After a few hours she slumped down exhausted and panting; the servos of the armor were still operating smoothly but her body was too jaded to provide the energy the suit required to function properly. Ria came over to her and took the belt off of her.

    “You should get some rest… but keep the suit off, it would just overly drain you otherwise.” The Irk urged her caringly, stroking back Jenna’s hair. But the human was already fast asleep.

 

 

_Massive – Prison block 362-2 – Twelve hours later_

 

 

Jenna woke with a rumbling stomach but, apart from that, rather well rested. Since she didn’t know what time it was she freaked at first, turning around for Ria. But the Irk smiled calmly and pushed a tray with two bowls towards her. They contained the Irken form of chips and although they were only half full Jenna’s stomach did a voracious jump and she grabbed one of the bowls.

But Ria handed her the second one as well. Jenna shook her head.

    “No way, you gotta eat, too!” she objected and was given a flick at her forehead.

    “I’m not the one who is going to have to fight two hungry Vorn. You need every bit of energy you can get. Eat. Don’t worry about me.” She returned and leaned back against the wall.

Jenna emptied both bowls within a minute and almost felt sated afterwards.

    “How long now?” she asked, licking her fingers. Ria tilted her head.

    “That depends on how you measure time… The Empire’s time measurement – thus being used in half of the galaxy – is Ti. That’s the time span in which the Pakrit performs a whole circulation through the Pak. You slept for almost 12 Ti.”

That didn’t help her at all. But she had an idea.

    “Could you divide one Ti through 60 and tell me when that time is over?” Jenna proposed excited and Ria curiously narrowed her eyes.

    “Sure.”

The human gave her a sign and they both started counting the time in their mind, Jenna in seconds.

Ria stopped a second before her but that was fine; one Ti was close to an hour.

The Irk nodded pleased. “That was a good idea. You have a bit more than three Ti left before the fight.”

Jenna exhaled relieved and got on her feet to warm up.

While she stretched and massaged her right shoulder she picked up faint mumbling from one of the cells across from them. Now and then yellow and crimson eyes flashed over to her.

Nervous she turned to her companion.

    “Ehm… any idea what  _they_  might be up to?” she asked under her breath and pointed inconspicuously into the direction of the opposite cell right as the inmate, a scraggy little Irk, stared at her again and leaned closer towards his neighbor.

Ria shrugged indifferently.

    “They’re making bets. It would seem most of them are betting on the Vorn despite your victory over the SIR units. Well, they are pretty gruesome beasts to be fair.” She responded quietly and eyed the screen at the end of the hallway. “I just hope the Tallest won’t be all too devastated should you win instead of their beasties.” She snickered, a rasping sound thanks to her voice. Jenna however felt sick.

Suddenly the whole situation seemed pointless. What if the Vorn were slow but over three meters tall? What if the Tallest had somehow changed them to be stronger  _and_ faster?! What if they were venomous!?

The more she thought it over the worse she felt. Three hours she would have to endure this wait. She wasn’t sure if she wouldn’t be completely bonkers by then.

    “Hey.”

Startled she wheeled around and looked in the direction from where the voice had come from. In the cell right next to them something moved in the shadows. She recognized it as one of the horned aliens with yellow eyes, sitting in the corner and staring at her. Now that it had her attention it leaned forward and bared sharp teeth at her in an angry grin.

“Mess ‘em up for me, a’ight? Rip ‘em up good an’ dontcha worry ‘bout those long ass fuckers. Once yer’ve won the whole brood over they gotta set yer free. Do it fer all o’ us in this here darn hell-hole!” He was more grunting than speaking and his voice was shaking from hatred. Jenna approached the bars and sat down legs crossed, intrigued by him.

    “May I ask who you are and why you’re here?” she asked the alien and he gave her a crooked grin. His lean, weather beaten body was scarred and he seemed to be recovering from a few recent punches to the face.

   “P’lite one ain’t ya? Welp, I’mma Vort. Mah people were working for them Irken scum; gave ‘em our tech so they won’t invade us. Big stunner when they  _did_. Name’s Jak. Never seen one like yer ‘round here. Must be from a new system the dogs wanna sack, eh? I was a tech on one of their darn factory-planets. Tried to run with some other fellas. Some actually got away.” The Vort rested his head back and sighed. His legs scraped over the floor and Jenna noticed that they were bent backwards and extremely long and thin.

She frowned.

    “I’m sorry… I’m Jenna; I’m a human from Earth. I don’t know what you call my solar system, but it has nine planets, a normal sun and only one habituated planet.”

To her utter surprise the yellow eyes widened. 

    “Aye, know that corner o’ the galaxy… planet E- Z172. The planet they’ve sent an invader to right after the whole Operation Impen’ing bullshit two started…The lil shit never made it back for all I know.” Jak said lost in thoughts. Then his eyes narrowed. “Why the hell’re ya gonna fight for yer shitty slave master an’ not fer yer own freedom? Yer not turned over, ain’t ya?”

Jenna sighed and shook her head;  _this_  again.

    “It’s… it’s complicated… I-, he’s different than the other invaders… I think…” She hoped.

The Vort broke into bleaking laughter and gave her a lewd glance once he’d managed to catch his breath.

    “Ooooh, it’s-a  _complica’ed_! Honey, I’m not one fer judging someone’s kinks, but yer gotta stay on yer toes with those dogs, I tell ya! There’s just not trusting ‘em, even the ones that seem to stand outta the crowd an’ be all nice ‘n shit to yer. Except maybe this one ‘ere, but lemme tell ya, she’s a lil crazy in the head.” He added, nodding at Ria. The Irk gave him an angry glare.

“Whoops, sorry sweet-cheeks, I’m just messin’ with ya. Wouldn’t want yer sweet ass to be mad at me.” Jak giggled and sighed again before glancing over to the screen. “Yer givin’ lots’a doomed souls in here a bit o’ hope, kiddo. Wanna know a griffin bout them Vorn? That bad sight o’ theirs is kinda their only weak spot. They rely on smell an’ hearin’ mostly. Try an’ distract ‘em with anything to jump on their backs; shoulda be easy getting’ to their ugly skull from there. An’ under that stupid crest-plate their meat’s soft an’ mushy, yer can literally feel their tiny brains. Maybe poke ‘em. Iunno.”

Jenna nodded seriously.

    “Thank you, Jak. I’ll definitely keep that in mind. I’m going to get out of there alive, and then you’ll tell me more about your escape, alright?”

The Vort grinned at her, a fire sparking in his eyes.

    “Aye, ya do that, an’ Imma tell ya all ‘bout it, honey.” He replied and quietly watched her testing the limits of her suit and warming up some more.

   
  


Her guards were surprisingly less coarse to her as they lead her down the prison hallway under the deafening cheers of the other prisoners. One of them bent down to her a little when they entered the elevator.

    “I had to put a whole lot of moneys on you after I lost another bet… so…” he whispered and she just nodded. She didn’t intend to lose.

The doors opened and she merely blinked against the floodlight and the bawling from the ranks wasn’t as terrifying as the first time.  Jenna gave the arena a brief look-around before she stepped out of the elevator.

The Tallest already lounged in their box and Red waved casually without any swollen speech this time to announce the round.

Her eyes darted back to the gate of her opponents that was almost lowered all the way down.

The Vorn were a mix of crocodile, buffalo and triceratops without horns. She recognized the crest-plate Jak had mentioned, a long, horned shield covering their napes, and the long jaws filled with sharp teeth. Luckily they only seemed to reach up to her head so she wouldn’t have that much trouble to mount them.

Scenting they raised their indeed ugly, scaly heads, and instantaneously dashed forward, kicking up the dirt beneath their heavy bodies like the spinning wheels of a motorcycle.

Jenna sprinted off as well, right towards them. Her legs were still slightly supported by the suit thus she reached her top speed a lot faster than the beasts. The frontmost Vorn lowered his head and opened his mouth widely. Since it was so long he would have to turn his head to the side to actually bite her and apparently he was aiming for the left. She ran a slight arch and didn’t notice how the spectators gasped for air excited.

With a furious scream she threw her arms up in the air and jumped before smashing her folded fists down on the Vorn’s snout with a horrible cracking sound.

The impact’s force was enough to stop the Vorn right on the spot so that it was carried by its momentum and somersaulted, crashing on his back; the open jaws were bleeding green where the teeth had dug into the gum. Jenna quickly checked for the second one but he was already retreating, warily turning his head towards the pained howl of his injured partner.

She pressed a boot on the struggling Vorn’s palate, grabbing the lower jaw with both hands. With all her might she threw herself against the jaws, pushing them apart; the creature underneath her roared blood-curdling and tried to shake her off. Something inside his head gave a satisfying snap and the roaring turned into an ear-splitting, gurgling screech as Jenna used her other foot to deal the jaw a last kick and it finally dangled dislocated onto the chest of the lifeless creature. Blood sprayed out of the ripped veins onto her face and her suit.

Jenna turned around in time to dodge to the side when the second Vorn lunged at her with splayed out talons. His paws caught her right leg and he immediately clawed into it like a lion.

She hit the ground but was jerked right back up, a piercing pain flashing through her entire leg as if caught inside a meatgrinder. Frantically she booted at the Vorn’s snout that was tearing her leg apart with claws and teeth alike. But the animal didn’t seem impressed by her more and more desperate getting kicks, his nose was just too loricated to feel the pain.

She screamed in agony, flailing, threw herself around and dealt berserk punches to the Vorn’s head. But only when she grabbed the cornificated arches over his eyes and jabbed her thumbs deeply into his eye-sockets, he let up on her and recoiled shrieking.

Jenna quickly rolled over, trying to get on her feet. But her mangled leg was covered in wounds, some of them reaching down to her bones. As she put weight on it now it immediately caved in. Red blazed before her eyes, the flaming pain wiped her brain empty until only her pure urge to survive was left. The armor covering her leg was broken and splintered; short circuits inside the electronic within the flexible material burned lines in her remaining skin and broken off shards dug into her flesh as she stood up again.

But she noticed all of this only at the edge of her consciousness. With teary eyes she focused on the Vorn that was pawing over his bleeding eyes and seemed distracted enough at the moment.

As fast as she could she limped forward, activating her suit’s interface. Ria had taught her how to adjust the power and she put everything she got on her legs. The damaged circuitry in her right leg couldn’t process the commands properly, causing even more shorts. The armor’s surface was already forming bubbles from the heat of the overloading electronic and if Jenna had bothered to look down she would’ve seen that her leg was literally on fire right now.

Yet the adjustment made it that easier to run that she was now hobbling, but insanely fast.   

The Vorn heard her approaching and flung around. His left eye was bleeding dead from its socket, the other one was staring at her lividly as he snarled and roared. Jenna screamed back and forgot about her leg, all her senses were focusing on the big plan; the plan to survive this and return to Set  _alive_!

The spectators gave a surprised shout when the human jumped high up in the air despite her fatal wound, landing on the Vorn’s long snout. Her hands clang to the crest and she wrapped both her legs tightly around his jaws. Like crocodiles the Vorn had incredibly strong muscles to bite down, but not as nearly that strong ones to  _open_  their mouth; and since Jenna’s suit was still applying all of its energy to her legs, they acted like screw clamps that pressed his jaws together mercilessly.

But the beast’s front legs were a lot longer than those of a crocodile and thus it reared up on its hind legs, clawing his talons over the human’s back to rip her to pieces.

Jenna felt the burning and tearing on her back, every slash of the Vorn drove the sharp talons a bit deeper into her skin but yet the armor protected her enough to prevent the deadly blow at her spine. She turned around on the creature’s snout, clutching at her wrecked right shin-piece that was still boiling hot. Ignoring her burning palm she grabbed a long shard of the armor and broke it off.

With a kick against her opponent’s nose she threw herself up until she could reach over the crest-plate, ramming the hot, sharp splinter all the way into the Vorn’s brain.

The wild beast screeched in panic and pain, buffeting his head about but Jenna held desperately onto the crest. Her hand literally fused with the burning piece of armor as her skin melted, and wrenched it out of the green flesh only to stab it over and over and over…

The Vorn staggered, his front legs giving way. Bursting into a savage cry, full of pain and wrath but also triumph, the human kept chopping at the bleeding, exposed brain, now clutching the shard with both her hands. Her face was covered beyond recognition in green blood and red blood, tears and dirt, but she still wouldn’t stop until the Vorn didn’t move anymore.

A death-like silence followed.

Nobody made a sound; none of the Irken found the courage to break into cheers. They all had seen so many fights to the death and most of them had ended in a bloodbath like this. But this was different. It had a despair and such a bitter taste to it that they couldn’t explain - couldn’t understand it. And yet every single one of them felt  _sick_.

The human collapsed on the crest-plate, still holding the charred shard she had torn from her own armor in a last resort to save her life. The stench of burnt flesh and blood hanging in the air. Nothing new for Irken invaders.

And yet they were stupefied in horror. The creature down in that arena was no convicted deserter with military training. She wasn’t a service drone that simply fainted from panic before the beasts could tear it apart. And above all she wasn’t not a Vortian rebel facing her doom silently without moving a single muscle. They didn’t understand what this was and because of that it frightened them. But it was over within a second and they just remained silent out of confusion.

Jenna screamed hoarse, her body a sea of flames; nothing seemed to be in the right place. How much blood had she already lost? How deep had the talons dug into her? Was her leg still connected to her body?

She didn’t know, couldn’t associate the countless, messed up signals her neural system tried to send to her brain and back all at once. But there was still one thing she had to do.

One little thing she had to take care of. Then for all she cared the beckoning darkness behind her eyes could take over her. The red, furious veil impending to blur her sight was at the same time driving her on, impelling her to slide off the Vorn’s head and slump into the dust.

It forced her to stand up in agony – she screamed out loudly – to take one step after the other. Every small step made her groan and pant, but she gritted her teeth to keep another shout. That she could do later.

The Tallest had rose from their seats and seemed to recoil as the human came closer and closer. Jenna looked at them, never letting her gaze falter even though it turned unsteady from time to time.

Then she stopped, swaying, and the ground around her turned red, as red as only blood from Earth could be. She collected her thoughts for a second. What did she want to do? Ah… yes.

She spit out before the Tallest.

    “I… I don’t give a single  _fuck_ about you… you’re so pathetic, you know that?” She spit out a second time, spit blood since she had bitten her tongue. “I’m stronger… I’m so much stronger than you are! So come… finish it.” Her stare got wilder and she took another step; blood shot from her leg but she had forgotten about it. “ _WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR YOU GUTLESS FUCKS?!_ ” she bellowed, a husky sound yet so thunderous that Purple tripped over his own feet and Red flinched.

    “Guards, take her away!” he snarled.

    “ _I knew it! You assholes are too fucking weak! You’re too weak you pathetic little shit, Red!_ ” the human blared and concerned mumbling turned up little by little among the spectators. And even the guards only approached her hesitating as if she had gone mad.

Jenna wheeled around upon feeling a touch on her arm and struck one of them at the neck with the side of her hand. Immediately his partner came to his aid and wrestled her down, and although he merely pushed shortly on her shoulder and her legs gave way there was a shocked sound going through the ranks.

But the human just laughed insane, tossing and turning under the guard.

“I can do this all day! Where’s my next-“

Something covered her mouth, gagging her. It was actually the guard’s hand! She was grabbed by her arms and half dragged, half carried out of the arena. The last thing she saw was Red wiping sweat off his forehead, then the elevator’s doors slid shut and she heaved on the floor between the two Irken guards. 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Weeeee, 20th part *celebrate*
> 
> I'd actually drawn this picture before I was even sure of what to write for this fight~ so the injuries aren't correct and omg what are proportions but, eh*shrugs*


	21. Rage - Pt. 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> writing this part literally made me cry :( I'm sorry Ria ♥  
> Check out the C U R I O S I T Y Playlist on 8Tracks!  
> http://8tracks.com/thetruemek/c-u-r-i-o-s-i-t-y

###  **\- 12 Rage –**

##### Part 2

  
The way back to her cell was a lot less heroic than her departure into the arena. It was dead silent in here as well. Only her pained screams echoed ringing through the prison wing’s hallways. Cowering in the corners of their cells the inmates silently watched how the two guards carried the human past them.

Her legs had long ago refused to support her body anymore and every time the guards shifted their grip around them Jenna cried out and fainted briefly before another push or pull jerked her from the darkness only to throw her back into it.

The gazes wandered from her shattered body over to the blood-trail that would stretch all the way from the elevator to her cell. 

Although the guards had treated her roughly they tried to bed the human as gently as possible onto the cell’s floor and left without another word.

Ria was still covering her mouth with both hands, shaking her head in disbelief. This shouldn’t have happened! Jenna wouldn’t survive these injuries if she didn’t…

    “Ri… Ria…” she sobbed exhausted and feebly raised a hand searching for her friend. The Irk shook her head, letting her own tears run freely.

    “No…. don’t speak!” she pleaded and enclosed the burnt hand as carefully as she could manage to. Jenna smiled faintly.

    “Nice… and cool… like Set’s hands…” she gulped hard and wanted to add something but her voice cracked. “I… I screwed up. I’ll never get out of here, right?” she asked quietly and pulled her hand back to cover her mouth. She didn’t want everybody to hear her loud sobs.

But they saw. Every pair of eyes lingered on the bleeding out human. The bets they had made wouldn’t get paid. Silent they stared at that brave woman who had willingly taken this torture on herself for the sake of an Irken invader. And this was to be her end? Their hatred for the Tallest and the Empire grew stronger than ever.

Ria saw the quiet condolence the prisoners felt for Jenna and she felt so cheap. It was her fault that this marvelous creature, this brave and caring alien was in this state. And it would be her fault if she died.

But she could do  _something_  to never let that happen!

Her Pak snapped open and she searched it. When she had found a few suitable tools she took the belt from Jenna’s body and gasped as the armor retracted only sluggishly. Under it the whole extent of her injuries became obvious. Above all it was the burning that worried her, as well as the Vorn’s saliva. How would the human’s immune system react to it? Was it possibly toxic to her? Or would the bacteria in it overwhelm her body?

Things she would have to deal with later.

The Irk cut the pant leg off with a metal arm and began picking the smaller splinters out of her flesh with two other spider legs. Frequently she stopped to stick the tips of her spider legs into the plasma bars to disinfect them. Every time she would get shocked from it but she ignored the pain.

Jenna’s intakes were already dangerously faint and Ria hurried to clean the wounds. When she was done she took the medical stapler she had needed for all the times the Tallest had wreaked their ill humor on her. As fast as she could she pressed the wound’s rims together and shot one metal clamp after the other into her skin until the gaping wounds were sealed up. That merely stopped the bleeding but she couldn’t do anything to heal the oozing, burnt flesh and Jenna's back was still torn open and bleeding.

Cautiously Ria used her spider legs to turn the human over on her belly and pulled the ripped top up to her neck. The Irk sighed relieved; the armor plates had protected Jenna against the talons for a change, they had left only superficial cuts, none of them reaching that deep into the muscles. With a more or less clean dip of her uniform she wiped the scratches clean and clamp-stitched them as well.

The human groaned at every metal clamp that buried into her flesh, apparently the nerves in her right leg had been burned along with the skin that she couldn’t feel it anymore.

When the last clamp had been set Ria leaned back and closely eyed her work. Jenna had lost consciousness but at least she was still breathing.

A whole while long – was it a Ti or more? – Ria sat there and watched over her friend. Suddenly the two guards entered the wing again, nervously avoiding the prisoner’s stares. The Irk shot them a furious glare.

    “What do you want? She’s still  _alive_!” she snarled and protectively put her hands around Jenna’s shoulders. The guards exchanged a strange look, almost sad.

    “In that case her… next fight is in twelve Ti. If she isn’t awake until then or dies…” they stoically looked away as Ria hissed at them but didn’t dare to finish the sentence.

    “She  _will_  live! She will  _win_!” the Irk yelled fervently and they both turned around and left. “Who is it?” she added quickly and the smaller one, the one who’d put the bet on Jenna, actually stopped and looked over his shoulder.

    “The Butcher.” He said quietly and followed his partner. Ria felt sick all of a sudden and clasped her hands before her mouth.

The Butcher was an Irk, an imprisoned criminal who had been convicted of countless brutal murders. Most of his victims were Irken, horribly torn apart limb from limb only to make them suffer the most. Someone like him would tear Jenna to pieces in her current state! And she would suffer… If the Butcher was known for anything else than his murders it was his bloodlust and cruelty. He was a monster, even by Irken standards.

She buried her face in her hands and cried. It would’ve been better Jenna had died under her hands.

Jak growled in his cell.

    “Fuckin' hell… those rotten pieces o’ shit! Can’t yer do anything for ‘er? If not, kill ‘er at least fer fuck’s sake. It be a darn shame fer the two o’ us if the lass had ta suffer. She doesn’t deserve to suffer like this…”

Was it the grief that made his accent even heavier than usual? Or just the hatred? It didn’t matter to her. His concern touched her.

That was one of the best things of being free; being able to share the feelings of other beings, to understand them. Being free… that also meant being free to make decisions you felt were right even if they might seem wrong in the eyes of the rest of the world.

Ria looked up, an uplifted, slightly distant look lingered on Jak and yet it went through him.

    “But yes… I  _can_  do something for her, actually. But I don’t know if it doesn’t affect her later on…” she mumbled, lost in thoughts. Jak grunted askingly.

    “Whadda yer ramblin’ ‘bout?”

Ria reached at her back and grazed over her Pak as if she was making sure it was still there in its place.

    “The substance in my Pak, the Pakrit: it is life. It saved me from death, healed my wounds and gave me new strength. If she drinks it…” she muttered, drumming her fingers at the middle tile. Jak grunted again, declining.

    “She’s a completely alien body! It might dissolve ‘er insides!” he objected but Ria looked at him, for real this time. Her eyes were gleaming with a fire that had been extinguished for a long, long time. During her days as a scientist it had always been there.

    “No, Jak… the Pakrit is  _life_! I’ve had tested it on so many life forms… The bigger the organism were the stronger the reaction and the more intense the energy-boost. The Pakrit would be absorbed faster and the healing properties were also greatly enhanced! I tested it on life forms half her size and the effect was amazing! As if they would all react so violently because their bodies weren’t used to it…” she brushed gently over Jenna’s head with the back of her hand.

She felt so much compassion for her… so much empathy and a strong connection. She couldn’t explain why, but Ria had learned to accept these feelings as they would occur.

“She  _will_  live… she  _will_  win. And she will change the world as we know it, I’m sure of that. I feel like she might have the power to change everything. Like a secret weapon that has been hidden until now.” With these words she flexed her muscles, gritted her teeth and activated her Pak’s ejection-mechanism. Jak gasped as he realized.

    “B- but… ain’t that gonna kill ya yerself?!”

Ria nodded, her gaze empty again, but a smile played around her thin lips.

    “Yes… but it is good this way. If she survives because of this, it’s good as it is. Why should the old live on when the future is dying?” she held her Pak in her arms and lightly shook Jenna’s shoulder. “Wake up, Jenna. Wake up dear.”

Jenna groaned half asleep as the pain returned with her awakening. But Ria continued to wake her up. “I know it hurts… but you have to listen.”

When the human opened her eyes with a fever-bright glance Ria took the translator from her suit and put it behind her ear. “Jenna? Listen well… you must drink this, then you’ll get better; do you understand?”

    “I… I am a bit… thirsty…” Jenna whispered so faintly that Ria could hardly understand her. She opened the Pak and pulled out one of the bigger tubes.

    “Take this in your mouth. You have to bite it open and suck on it. Like a straw.” She explained ad suddenly felt a lump in her throat as the human’s bright eyes filled up with tears.

    “This… this is your Pak… Ria… but won’t you…!” she realized doleful. The Irk shook her head and put a finger on Jenna’s lips.

    “Sshh… it’s alright. It’s alright. Be a good girl and drink, okay? Do it for me…” her own tears started running and Jenna took the artificial artery between her teeth. At first she couldn’t bite it open because her lips were trembling.

“Harder, love. Don’t think about it.” Ria encouraged her and with a quiet snap the tube broke. The Pakrit streamed out of the Pak in a deep crimson; it tasted salty like blood and yet strangely sweet. A sole drop ran over her chin. After a few draws she let the tube go and cried out.

    “I- I just c-can’t! Ria… please, don’t make me… don’t make me do it…” she pleaded with cracking voice and fiercely shook her head as the Irk shoved the tube back into her mouth urging. “ _Please_  Ria… I don’t want something happen to you!” she mewled and her green eyes shouted what she couldn’t speak out:  _I don’t want to kill you._

    “You have to drink everything or it was all for nothing! I’m begging you, Jenna; There is still hope! You have to sur- survive… and… contact the rebels.” Her voice sounded strained as if she was trying to keep down nausea. Jenna looked up and gave a panicked scream.

Rias eyes were bleeding. From her mouth and the roots of her antennae poured almost black blood in thin, but steady trickles. She wanted to help her, but the scientist grabbed her with unexpected strength and kept her at a distance.

“Don’t worry about me! Don’t you dare waste this second chance I’m giving you! Once you’ve finished the last drop of Pakrit you may come closer!” she hissed, twisting her fingers into sharp claws.

Jenna sank back with a violent sob and obediently sucked on the vein. It tasted horribly but she forced herself to drink every mouth full. Suck, swallow, cry.

While she was forcing it down Ria cringed on the floor and groaned in agony. Her black blood already formed a puddle under her head and her back where she bled from the Pak’s connection ports. Quivering from spasms she tossed and turned her head uncontrollably, hitting her temple against the metal floor, causing more blood to splash. Her mouth was opened widely, her white teeth smudged with blood; she had bitten off the tip of her tongue.

Jenna closed her eyes in terror and focused desperately on emptying the Pak as quickly as possible, even though her stomach already rebelled and bile prickled inside her throat. She had to help Ria!

But deep inside her she knew that it was too late even if she would’ve actually been able to help the dying Irk.

All of a sudden the stream of Pakrit broke and she drew air. Immediately Jenna threw the empty, terribly light Pak away and crawled over to Ria. Her hands were shaking so badly that she was afraid to hurt her, and it made her feel achingly weak and helpless. Ria had scratched her face and neck in her pain, her eyes had turned dark through the blood pouring in while the rest of her body had gotten extremely pale.

Jenna heard the guards approaching in a distance but her entire attention was turned to Ria as she finally managed to wrap her arms around her shoulders and pull her to her chest.

    “Ria…” a hoarse whisper, a loud, shaking breath; she couldn’t say more.

“D- don’t go… oh god… please… don’t let me… don’t let me alone in here…” her sight blurred again, her tears dripped on the Irk’s forehead and broke the black streams of blood. “I… I only g- got you left… only you…”

The guards didn’t dare to interfere. They just stood there and listened to the frantic cry of the human, a sound so pained, so full of sorrow that it stirred something in them, yet they couldn’t really understand it. It upset them and yet it felt so strange and disconnected that they didn’t accept it as their own sensation.

Jenna cradled Ria in her arms and rocked back and forth with an ear-piercing wail. The entire pain in her body seemed to concentrate in her chest about to tear her apart. Her jaws clenched and hurt as if she was supposed to scream out loud, scream out her loss and her pain that it would shatter the walls around her, and yet she couldn't.

The female Irk was already dead, but she kept calling her name, shaking her shoulders to wake her up. She suddenly lay Ria down on her back and pressed the ball of her hand into the middle of her ribcage and started to press down. After thirty pushes she was about to give her artificial respiration but when she looked into black, wide open eyes that wouldn’t move, wouldn’t blink and were without a sign of life she sank down, resting her forehead against Ria’s and was shaken by silent cries; her voice choked at the sight of this failure, and there wasn’t any strength left in her body to keep her upright.

Crying quietly she cowered bent over, holding Ria’s hands in her own.

The guards turned on their heels; it was nothing they had to take care of right away. They would get the corpse once the human was inside the arena. But the smaller one, named Riz, stopped and turned around.

    “I…” he began but only got a loud, collective growling and hissing in return from all around him.

    “Sod off, yer worm! Yer ain’t gonna  _get_  what’s that all about, even if yer  _wanted_. Y’all would probably understand it if yer ripped off yer dang Paks yerself, an’ even then it’d just be in the last darn seconds o’ yer pathetic slave-life!” Jak snarled, angrily baring his teeth. The guards finally left for good and he turned to the human, a deep grief on his scarred face.

“Hey… it’s… it’s over fer her, kiddo. Yer can’t help her no more. ‘m sorry, lass… she was a damn fine gal… she was a free Irk an’ yer finally ended her sufferin’. Now c’mere, I have to tell ya somethin’ important!”

Jenna didn’t move at first, her fingers had clasped around Ria’s and she fought back her sobbing. But then she crawled over to the bars that separated her from the Vort and stared at the ground. Jak leaned forward until his face almost touched the plasma barrier. “Listen carefully an’ remember what I say to ya: There’s a group o’ rebels called the Resisty. Heh, ain’t that a stupid name, eh? Anyway, they accept nearly everyone who’s fightin’ against the Empire an’ they will welcome yer with open arms once they hear yer story. They’re usin’ a password fer long range frequencies.” Jak looked around alertly before he leant in even further.

“The code is in Vort, so yer gotta memorize the sounds.” He gave four grunting sounds and was afterwards not sure if she’d been even listening to him.

But Jenna nodded slowly and quietly repeated them. The Vort sighed relieved. “Good, yer have to contact them an' they’ll come an’ safe ya. They’re kinda bold like that.”

    “Jak? I’m… I’m so tired. It feels as if the Pakrit is taking all energy from me…” she muttered emotionless. Compared to earlier the human suddenly didn’t seem able to express any emotions at all. He frowned concerned.

    “I think it’s okay if yer rest fer a bit. I’ll make sure nothin’s gonna happen to ya.” The Vort replied and nervously scratched the back of his head. She didn’t know that there was still one fight waiting for her but he didn’t want to upset her anymore with this message. She deserved some peace and quiet.

While he sat in his corner, listening to the human’s breath getting slower Jak noticed something about a few Ti later; He blinked in disbelief and leaned forward. Hadn’t something moved on her leg just now? Concentrated he stared at the bite wounds.

There it was again!

One of the metal clamps had moved as if something was pushing it from inside. Then another clamp started wiggling, further up her leg, and another and all of a sudden the whole skin was quivering. With high clicks the first clamp fell to the floor and the wound’s edges melted together. He was watching a sped up healing process.

Jak just stared open mouthed and watched numbed how the mangled leg swelled and detumesced, how dark scars formed themselves and the skin slowly stopped moving. Jenna’s leg was still severely burnt and scarred but he just knew that she would be able to run without greater pain which lifted his hope anew.

The human sighed in her sleep and turned over on her other side and he could see how her eyes moved around restlessly under their lids. Her back was as good as new, only faint, bright scars ran over the length of it. But something was strange… something was happening to the young woman’s body that didn’t seemed right.

When she moved again the muscles of her shoulders bulged and appeared to get bigger. Strands of muscles were protruding the skin of her neck as well as she turned it to prop her head on her hands.

Jak exhaled his held breath through his teeth, a low whistle in the silence.

    “Well… I’m darn curious what this is gonna be in the end…” he muttered and leaned back.

 

Jenna dreamt. They were dark dreams, triggered by all the traumatizing experiences she had made. Those dreams were dominated by fear, rage, and the desperate wish to hide under her blanket like she would as a child after waking from nightmares. But in her thoughts was no room for mercy. Nobody would come to wake her from the bad dreams and hum calmingly that she might dream something nicer. Here were only memories of pain, of fear and the wild urge to survive the next seconds.

All of this felt familiar and yet unknown. They were dreams of her ancestors, the recollection of the fight to survive.

There was something else. It poked the edges of her consciousness and appeared to demand being let in. A crimson glow that beckoned her. Curious Jenna turned her attention to it and it grew, filled her mind and her brain and connected parts of it that her body hadn’t used in this way and would never be able to use on Earth. But the Pakrit built neural connections between all areas of her brain to unlock its full potential. And the human brain provided quite the potential.

Jenna’s dreams changed. They weren’t any less dark, though. Before her inner eye she saw the faces of those she’d lost. Those she would never see again. The sorrow threatened to suffocate her.

Then she saw the faces of the Tallest and she realized that everything, literally everything was their fault alone!

Hatred exploded in her with an incontrollable force together with the wish to kill them, to eviscerate them and to rip their Pak’s off so that they might suffer the way Ria had suffered!

From this rage all of her muscles tensed up; another effect of the Pakrit. It recognized these structures as the body’s musculoskeletal system and started to build it up.

Jenna began to twitch; her hands grasped for invisible things, her legs wanted to run…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So when's Set deciding to show up again?  
> Probably after the next chapter~


	22. Rage - Pt. 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Check out the C U R I O S I T Y Playlist on 8Tracks!  
> http://8tracks.com/thetruemek/c-u-r-i-o-s-i-t-y

###  **\- 12 Rage –**

 

##### Part 3

  
Five more Ti had passed and Jak had started to grow nervous. The previously tiny body of the human had now built up on so much more muscles that he asked himself where this might’ve had come from; surely not from those few chips the other day! The fight was almost about to start and she still hadn’t woken up…

Just as he thought about how to wake her the easiest way, Jenna opened her eyes and fixed them on the Vort with a cold stare. They seemed to glow with a crimson light from within them. But only a second later she blinked and the hardness vanished.

    “Jak, when is my next fight?” she asked quickly while already grabbing her belt and activating her armor. She was moving so fast…

    “Err… in one Ti. B-but how’d ya know o’ that?” he replied confused. She activated the holographic interface and swiftly pushed around on it. How in the hell was she suddenly able to operate it that well?

The human gave a short harrumph and ripped some of the material covering her left arm open. She pulled wires and electrodes out of it, twirling them together to lead them over the palm of her hand between her fingers, where she split some of the wires up to wrap them around her fingers. Then she entered new commands into the interface.

Jak gasped frantically. “Fuckin’ hell; yer not gonna stand a chance against that brute! He’ll kill ya!” He cried out and smashed a fist on the metal floor.

Jenna didn’t seem to care; she stood up and stepped up to the cell’s wall. Slowly she lifted her wired hand and tightly pressed her fingers together. She rammed them into the wall knuckle-deep and pulled on the created rim. With a screeching sound the top layer of the steel was peeled off as if it was but the bark of a tree.

She tore off an arm-long piece of the metal without any visible strain and bent it into a slightly curved form. Jak watched with wide open eyes how she attached the improvised cuisse to her right leg where the armor had broken off. To keep it in place she ripped a thin, long metal strip out of the wall, wrapping it a few times around her leg and twisting the ends together.

After she was done and stood upright again her eyes were giving off an eerie glow. Her mouth was shut into a hard line what made her jaw muscles stand out.

    “I’m ready. And I won’t die, not before I’ve seen Set one last time.” She boomed with a steady, deep voice that had a ghostly subharmonic to it, like a faint echo. Jak gulped anxiously. Jenna’s face grew softer in a smile. “Don’t be afraid, Jak.”

In that moment the alarmed guards arrived and saw the hole in the wall, and the obviously not dead human who had caused this severe damage to a solid metal wall. The taller one immediately called for backup while the smaller one, Riz, could only stare at her in terror.

Her smile vanished, though it didn’t turn into that cold, emotionless expression again. Calmly she walked right up to the plasma bars and raised her hand; the crimson shine of her eyes intensified as she let her splayed out fingers move over the barrier.

A groaning went through the other prisoners when one bar after the other flickered and disappeared into little glowing particles. The air itself was shaken by the static energy the human emitted.

The guard recoiled startled and tried with trembling hands to aim his weapon at the creature that walked out of her cell just like that – slowly, composed and graceful. Yet she stopped in front of him, showing him her empty hands.

    “Go ahead and chain me up if you feel safer this way. But you should know that I don’t intend in the least to disgrace my master one more time. I’m just going to fight this last round and then I will return to this cell.”

Riz’ whole body was a trembling heap and he didn’t find the courage to respond anything. It was as if her mind, her consciousness, was inside his own head and soothed his brain that was frozen from fear. He felt kindness engulfing him, like a gentle embrace and yet the human stood before him and was just looking at him. Riz nodded slowly and pointed down the hallway.

    “Th- this way…” he stuttered and she walked behind him. The arriving backup scooted around the corner only to stop on the spot. Jenna didn’t bother to look at them and just walked past them; but she also grazed their minds, simply because they stood too close to her and just like she did with Riz, her new-found power calmed them to the point where they would just stand around and watch her walk by.

In those few seconds in which she passed them she got to know everything about the Irken guards: their past, their names and so much more. Her brain didn’t memorize any of it, just acknowledged it. It was busy doing something far more important. In her thoughts, isolated from the vast area her enhanced mind was observing, she was using electric impulses of both her body and her suit to defuse the explosive collar still around her neck. One of the scenarios analyzed by her was that the Tallest intended to detonate it via a remote fuse control to take her down. She realized soon that it would take her a bit more time than anticipated. But it wasn’t a real issue.

The elevator closed its doors and Riz stopped behind her nervously. He felt watched, as if the human had eyes in the back of her head… he could literally sense her keen gaze lingering on him.

    “I wish I could’ve said him goodbye.” She suddenly muttered what made him flinch. Before the Irken guard could ask she slightly turned her head towards him, but stood still. “Set. I wish I could’ve told him to take care.” Jenna put a hand around the flashing collar around her neck and felt this new power, this supernatural might, flaring inside of her like wildfire. “When I concentrate hard enough, I can hear his voice.”

The doors slid open and the floodlight glared the human for the last time and reduced the eerie glow shining from her eyes so that she almost appeared normal again. Now she did turn around and smiled, genuinely smiled at him. “Take care, Riz.”

The last thing that brushed the Irk’s mind was an almost touchable wave of rage before she left.

Jenna walked into the arena under the excited jeers of the spectators. From every rank the Irken pointed at her as she slowly stepped into the middle; her posture upright like it had been on the day she had entered it the first time, hands loosely at her sides, eyes bright and alert.

Red gulped.

    “Shit… how is that even possible? She was as good as dead!” Purple growled not any less shocked but a lot less composed than his hatch-twin. He dug his claws in his seat and shot a hectic glance to Red. “Kill her, right now! I have a really bad feeling about this!”

The Tallest nodded and opened a hatch on his bracer, pushing a button.

Nothing happened, only that the human suddenly jerked her head up, looking straight at them, slightly narrowing her eyes. Purple gave a panicked croak. Red furrowed his brows and pushed the button again that was meant to act as a remote control for the explosive collar.

    “Here I am. Where is my opponent?” she called up to them. Only that she wasn’t actually  _calling_. Her voice was sounding from inside their heads and echoed eerily. Purple yanked his antennae and Red’s eyes almost bulged out of their sockets.

    “Release the Butcher, release him  _now_!!” he shrieked down to the guards at the gate controls with flailing arms. The gate lowered at once and the massive silhouette of the Butcher loomed inside the hall behind it.

Jenna left her stare lingering on the Tallest for another second before she slowly turned her head to eye her opponent walking out of the elevator with heavy steps.

It was the biggest, most gigantic Irk she had ever seen. Not as tall as the Tallest or even Set, but still over two meters and almost as wide as he was high around his shoulders. His arms flexed and the muscles under the dark skin bulged like ropes.

The Butcher roared, showing chipped, yellow teeth. Jenna was still engrossed in her observing as he already attacked. Faster than you would’ve imagined he dashed at her, bowing his head to ram her. But the human had predicted as much and took on a stand ready to jump.

In the second the Butcher – whose name was actually Lok – flung his right shoulder forward to squash every bone in her body, she spun around on her left foot, stretching her right leg out and swung it around so fast that she hit his neck with a kick powerful enough to sent him flying.

With a sound like she had knocked down an elephant the Butcher hit the ground. Jenna lowered her leg again and jumped forward, her armor switching lightning fast to leg-support so that she sailed through the air. The mass murderer was bobbing up as her boots crashed on his Pak with the force of  five times her weight, smashing him back into the dirt.

The spectators had recovered from their initial shock and were now freaking out in their seats. Jenna dodged a blow of his spider legs with the swiftness of a cat and did a perfect backflip to get out of his reach. Brawling he got back up - she noticed a small crack in his Pak and smelled the Pakrit flowing out - and went after her. A quick exchange of blows followed, which she only won because she could foresee his berserk haymakers and uppercuts, dodging faster than the eye could see.

But killing him eventually would still prove to be difficult. His skin, densely covered in scars, was thick and horned, and it would be hard to simply crack his neck or reach vital organs because of the sheer mass around them.

First of all she would have to make him lose his sense of orientation… She let his next punch brush by her cheek close enough that he thought he had hit her. But Jenna grabbed his arm and pulled herself up on it. She landed on his shoulders and immediately jumped off, clutching his antennae in midair. Taken from her momentum she just needed to pull her arms to her body and was rewarded an agonized howl. One blood-dripping antenna dangled between her fingers, the one left was only partly torn but that would suffice, the Butcher held his ugly head and fell to his knees.

She landed behind him, tossed the appendage away and threw herself around; her left fist, the one entangled in wires, shot forward aiming for the cracked Pak. With a raging cry she focused all her power on this punch. The cables around her fingers drew more energy from the armor’s systems, concentrating all power in the human’s left fist.

The impact was so massive that dust was blown up from its force and the cracking of the breaking Pak echoed through the arena. Jenna jumped on his back to pull something out of the open structure; but he was tough, way tougher than estimated and reached over his shoulder to grab hold of her. With fuming rage powering him, he threw her through the whole arena, already storming at her again; blood and Pakrit running down his back.

She tried to roll while protecting her loot at the same time and hit the ground hard, staying stunned for a moment since the armor’s power was still focused in her fist and couldn’t cushion her fall.

It was a second too long; a big, heavy foot smashed down on her left knee, scrunching it into a pasty mass out of bones, blood and cartilage.

She screamed surprised and pained and her concentration was suddenly broken, panic shooting up in her mind. The Butcher howled triumphing, closing a giant paw around her neck. That pulled her back and Jenna stabbed at him with the pointy end of the spider leg she had torn from the Pak.

She managed to reach his cheek and buried the metal spear in it. The Butcher recoiled, taken off guard, and let up on her, protectively pressing a hand to his face.

She jumped back on her feet, the right one that is. When she tried to put weight on her left leg a warning red blaze flashed up behind her eyes. She wouldn’t be able to win the fight with a severe wound like this. Her calculated odds dropped in an instant.

Her eyes darted quickly over the huge frame of the Irk, who was circling her warily. A flush of blood gushed out of his torn cheek and he was losing much more from the destroyed Pak. He couldn’t keep this up for much longer as well.

Jenna used the wires in her left hand to switch the suit’s support completely to her left leg without being noticed. She couldn’t say if it would work but this was the only try she would get.

The Butcher dashed forward, aiming for her right side, as expected. She had foreseen it again and surprised him now by dodging to her left side, as  _he_  had planned, though she didn’t stagger as anticipated. Instead she took a solid stand and threw her arms in the air, ramming his own spider leg knuckle-deep into his throat. His sheer force made both of them fall down and he landed on top of her. She had calculated that risk and now used it to her advantage. He couldn’t reach her underneath him and she started stabbing his neck over and over, moving the improvised spear around in it until she was completely covered in crimson blood and it gushed in her mouth.

She wanted to grin victorious but suddenly he flung around, dragging her from beneath him. Before Jenna could react he had taken the spider leg from her. A sharp pain stung through her right shoulder as the metal went through it, tearing her old wound open and piercing her shoulder blade. She screamed agonized, the Irken blood burned on her exposed flesh and set her shoulder ablaze. She lost control again and was about to freak out, writhing and screaming frantically in his grasp.

The Butcher grabbed her throat again to pull her up. Then she saw the bloodied, dripping metal spike closing in on her, right at her right eye. Mad from fear she tossed and turned, pulling on his hand and kicking at him with her good leg but the Butcher slowly got to his feet, stood upright and held her away on arms’ length while slowly aiming for her eye.

A shocked yelp went through the ranks when the human’s ear splitting scream echoed through the arena and just wouldn’t stop.

But he didn’t finish her off just yet, that concept of mercy was lost on him. He pulled the spider leg from the eye of his opponent with a wet sound, licking her blood off of it with relish. She clasped a hand over her eye, the other one dug into his arm that the skin popped open. Her screams were the sweetest he’d ever heard. Slowly he raised his hand again to carve out her other eye as well. At that he drew her closer to his face and whispered:

    “Not bad a fight, worm. But this is the end for you.” He laughed loudly and enjoyed how she closed her eyes desperately to escape the inevitable, her hand all the while covering her face protectively. But suddenly her left hand shot forward, abandoning the idea of trying to free her and instead attack, invading his mouth and closing around his lower jaw.

Out of reflex he bit down and the armor around her fingers cracked but she didn’t let go, the grip around his teeth even got tighter and actually painful, and her thumb dug ever deeper into the softer flesh under his chin.

When he tasted blood he opened his mouth to bite her fingers clean off. But he made the mistake to look up, straight into her unharmed eye. He froze, his thoughts cut out and a paralyzing silence spread through his mind. The strange, green eye, surrounded by a crimson glow hypnotized him.

Jenna’s pain and closeness to death had driven her over a border that few humans had crossed before when facing similar situations. Soldiers in Vietnam, starving children on the street and shipwrecked sailors stranded on an island. Now it was all just survival. Now it was the Butcher or her. No matter how, no matter the cost:

One had to die.

Her beast-like cry lifted the paralysis but in the same second she ripped her arm back. With the terribly wet sound of tearing flesh the Butcher’s jaw got severed from his skull, muscles, ligaments and blood-vessels ripped apart into a fountain of blood.

The Butcher howled in agony, yet it was only a very loud gurgling and shrieking. His tongue was coiling uncontrolled like a worm, a massive gush of blood showered Jenna in more crimson, and he let go of her, stumbling backwards; his hands tried to cover the wound, tried to keep the life inside of him.

She fell in slow-motion. While she braced against the painful impact she looked at him. He seemed to be about to go for her again but a quick look around told her that he would die in the next couple of moments. Jenna felt strangely light when she hit the blood-sodden ground, dislocating her right shoulder from the fall. A hot stream of blood splashed out of that shoulder and mixed with the blood from her eye socket on her face.

She realized that she had been quite lucky. It could’ve been much worse.

The Butcher collapsed next to her, a puddle of blood forming under his head. He stared at her, stared in such disbelief that she had to grin.

    “You were right… this is the end for me… but… for you as well. Quite pathetic… getting killed… by a worm like me… hm? So… embarrassing.” She panted breathless and closed her eyes exhausted.

Sour calls hailed from the ranks of the arena. The spectators had wanted a winner, not a stupid tie. One of the guards was ordered to check if the human was dead. They had no doubt about the Butcher, his eyes were staring emptily towards the ceiling.

Riz was at Jenna’s side before any of the others could even move. Carefully he turned the human over on her back, smacking her cheek with the back of his hand. Jenna frowned reluctant and lifted her left hand to shoo him away like an annoying fly.

    “Can you hear me? You have to get up! Otherwise they’re going to let you die right here! If you’re able to stand you’ll be the victor and maybe have the chance on… something, I don’t know what good it may do you.” He whispered urgently and tried actually to pull her up.

Why should she try to? There was no point to it anyway. The fight was over and she would die. What was she supposed to do with a stupid trophy or goddamn prize money? Or fucking  _glory_? Maybe she could throw the trophy at their heads and perish afterwards. That would be funny. She’d always imagined she’d die laughing…

But the Pakrit inside of her wasn’t ready to let her go just yet. She cursed Ria in her thoughts as her left hand really supported her on the ground on its own, her right leg stabilized her and she pulled herself up on Riz’ arm. Her eye opened just as the deafening cheer of hundred shouting Irken crashed over her like a wave. And as if that wasn’t enough a mysterious force grabbed hold of her arm (actually it was Riz) and she started goddamn waving at the crowd.

She couldn’t see the Tallest, but she heard Red’s voice over the speakers. He sounded pissed. She liked it.

    “Yes! Your- err,  _our_  champion has prevailed yet again… yay! But I’m afraid she won’t be able to fight any more rounds. Bring her back to her room where she can ro- err I mean,  _retire_!”

He wanted to add something else but it already hailed boos and hissing and – were that chips bags?

The crowd was now raging in the exact opposite direction. Every Irk was up in their seats booing at the Tallest in an open rebellion. Some of those she could make out.

    “What gives?! We want to see her fight again! Just put her in the MedBay!”

    “Yeah, just patch her up like you did after the second round! I’ll give all the monies I’ve won so that she can fight again!”

    “Me too, and my savings!”

    “We want the human!”

    “We want the human!”

Was her translator completely trashed or were they singing chants? Jenna supported herself heavily on Riz and focused on staying awake. A tiny spark of hope lit up in her.

    “Riz? When… when I’m starting to faint, punch me, please…” she mumbled to the Irk and he nodded.

Red looked over to his twin. Purple looked like he wanted to sink his teeth into something. Not a big help. But then he an idea crossed his mind.

   “Alright, alright! We’ll put her in the MedBay, but only under the heaviest of security, nobody may disturb her healing process!” he tried to calm the chorus and the angry atmosphere slowly settled. “Take the human to the MedBay with all the best wishes of her many fans. We will  _personally_  ensure her recovery!” he called after her as Riz carried Jenna towards the elevator.

At the thought that both the Tallest wanted to personally take care of her the little spark of hope died in her chest. Now she would die for sure.

When the doors were closed she collapsed again and the guard tried to wake her, but it was no unconsciousness, more like a deep coma.

He didn’t know what to do, the elevator stopped at the prison floor and suddenly the giant frames of his almighty Tallest appeared in the doorway. Red made a face and waved at the guards to lay the human on the floating bier they were dragging behind them. Riz helped the other guards to hoist her on the litter, and then he was sent back up to clean the arena. With wide eyes he kept staring at the creature that had stirred these strange emotions inside of him.

 

Red couldn’t stop pondering. How in the world had she been able to not only defeat the Butcher despite her previous injuries but literally tear him to pieces like that? Were humans perhaps more dangerous than they had believed at first? In any case he had to make sure she would never be able to use this scary power again. Also he never wanted to see Purple in this shocked state again. Almost pathetic.

Arriving at the MedBay he searched for a remote and empty room and instructed the guards to wait outside. Then he turned to the human. Was she already dead? Cautiously, as if he expected her to immediately attack him he held his palm over her mouth. She was  _still_ breathing.

By Irk he had never come across something this stubborn in his life! Better to kill her right here than to take any more risks; he had underestimated her long enough!

Red snapped a spider leg from his Pak and aimed for the human’s chest.      

Purple held his breath.

    “You won’t cause any more trouble ever again…” the Tallest growled, satisfaction in his voice and lashed out.

The spear hit something but stopped too early. A scared scream escaped Purple’s lips and Red simply turned into stone. Her left eye was wide open and rolled back, the white now crimson and staring at him like some strange Irken eye. Terrified he looked down and stared baffled at the hand clutching his spider leg. Jenna was breathing shallowly and didn’t move. Yet she didn’t let go of him either. She didn’t say anything, just kept her eye open. Her ragged breath sounded hollow and seemed to be a mere reflex like the grasping.

Although the human couldn’t possibly move Purple dragged Red hectically back to the door. The tip of Red’s spider leg slipped out of her blood smeared fingers and then he was free again and her hand slumped back on the bier. But she kept staring at him with this creepy eye.

The door closed and Purple exhaled panting.

    “What was  _that_? What the hell was that back there, Red?” he hissed, trembling all over his body when he grabbed Red’s shoulder plate to shake him. He freed himself brashly.

    “How am  _I_  supposed to know?! Maybe humans turn into zombies after their dead or they are simply fucking tougher than they look!” he massaged his temples with eyes shut. “We… just keep her in there. Without any medical attention she will die either way sooner or later. Problem solved.” With this he turned around and hovered towards the elevator. Purple shot the door a last, nervous glance and followed him.

 

Red slumped onto the lounger in their quarter. He felt worn out and terribly exhausted. Purple gorged himself through a bag of chips and a dozen donuts in no time. He was a complete mess. For a while Red watched his upset hatch-twin when a message from the Bridge broke the churned up silence between them.

    “My Tallest, incoming message on long range communication!” the tech reported and Red lazily waved his hand. The Empire’s symbol appeared on the main screen and shortly after that Set’s face.

Purple chocked on a donut and cringed coughing on the couch. Red had jumped to his feet, staring aghast at the invader.

    “S-Set?! But…” he shrieked; becoming aware of his bafflement he straightened himself in pride, brushed back his antennae and gave a short sigh. Everything was under control. No reason to panic. Set probably just wanted to give them a first report or ask for more weapons. “Greetings, invader Set! We hope you’re coming along with your mission, doing us proud?”

Set’s eyes gleamed with pride and he couldn’t hide the wide grin as he saluted sharply.

    “My almighty Tallest, I’m glad to inform you that the hideous squid-creatures have been completely eviscerated! Nothing stands in the way of the planet’s conversion into a fuel-depot. I’m on my way back and just passed Vort. You may expect my arrival in minus three Ti. Invader Set signing off.”

The screen went black and Red stared at it a whole minute longer. Purple had recovered from his attack and lay whimpering on the sofa.

    “ _HOW_?!” Red snarled and ejected all eight spider legs in a tantrum. “How did he manage to conquer this planet in less than four cycles?! Without additional resources?” his spider legs stabbed the empty chips bag on the couch. Purple sat up and cocked a brow.

    “Really now? Do you remember what he was capable of before? What he already managed to accomplish when he wasn’t even first invader of the fleet? He’s the best invader in the whole armada and  _we_  made him like this. What did you expect?”

Red waved him off angrily.

    “It’s just this  _perfect_  timing that irritates me… we mustn’t tell him under any circumstances what really happened! How’s this: the human left his quarter and got stopped by some guards. She resisted escort and got killed!”

Purple shook his head.

    “That’s stupid! We won’t be able even slightly to smother up the fact that she slayed the Butcher, for crying out loud! No, we need to make this plausible. We tell him the truth. To some extent, mind you.” He added as Red recoiled in shock. “She attacked me - that we have on tape. We offered her a chance on redemption, forgiving as we are, and she died in the arena.”

Red nodded slowly, realizing the cleverness of this.

    “Okay… he’ll buy that. Good, the room in the MedBay should stay unguarded to not draw any unwanted attention to it. But mark it as locked in the ships’ log, or the medical staff might stumble over her.” Purple nodded and Red gave his antennae another stroke. Everything was under control… when did he start to let something like this shake him so much?

Set would never learn what really happened in the arena. And even if, he wouldn’t dare to question his leaders, that he was sure of.

Red looked over to Purple and clicked his tongue. He lifted his gaze confused but when he saw Red’s expression he grinned.

    “Wow, that got you really worked up now, didn’t it?” he sneered and got a growl in return so he stood up and floated over to his hatch-twin. Purple let his claws graze Red’s antennae and he sensed the quiver running through his body.

    “Stop talking about it and get to work already… I’m stressed out.” He hissed lowly and Purple purred.

    “Yes, my Tallest.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welp, Set's going to get back next week... what do you think will happen next?


	23. Wounds

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Check out my C U R I O S I T Y Playlist on 8Tracks!!  
> http://8tracks.com/thetruemek/c-u-r-i-o-s-i-t-y

**\- 13 Wounds -**

    

 _3 hours later –_ Massive _– Dock – 8 days 15 hours after abduction_

 

Set waited impatiently for the docking sequence to finish and couldn’t sit tight until the hatch finally opened and he could leave the ship. He carried a trophy inside a sachet on his shoulder and something for Jenna he had picked up on the way back. SIR was vigilantly scurrying behind him like always.

The guards on the dock saluted him even sharper than usually and some of the other invaders running around on the floor greeted him a bit too enthusiastically.

Normally they would keep their distance in a respectful way but today they even seemed bold enough to approach him. One of them, only a little bit taller than Jenna, actually walked beside him a few seconds and babbled something about a ‘victory’ and how proud he must feel before running off.

Confused and slightly irritated he pressed both his antennae to his head and pulled his lip up into a hiss. But there was already the next Irk, a taller invader, encouraged by the smaller one’s daring and actually reached up to pat him on the back!

    “I couldn’t believe my eyes when the human broke that Vorn’s jaw, what a beast!”

Set stopped so abruptly as if he’d walked into an invisible wall. The words ‘human’ and ‘Vorn’ in the same sentence caused his blood to freeze as he now grabbed the smaller invader by the collar and simply lifted him from the ground to look him dead in the eyes.

    “ _What_  did you just say, you worm?! What was that about a  _Vorn_? Speak up,  _now_!” he shook the Irk and now indeed bared his teeth. The invader squeaked terrified and raised his hands defensively.

    “I… I- the human, invader Set, s-sir!  _Your_  human; she fought in the arena. She was ordered to after attacking almighty Tallest Purple! First the SIR units, but I didn’t watch that fight only the ones against the two Vorn and the Butcher. She-“

But he couldn’t finish, Set suddenly dropped him ungently on the floor. The great, fearless invader just stood there staring at him blankly. The others mumbled confused to each other.

He was completely speechless. That wasn’t true… it couldn’t possibly be true! Fought in the arena? Attacked Tallest Purple?! Jenna would never…

He turned on his heel and ran towards the elevator. Something was throbbing in the back of his head, his spider legs wanted to shoot from the Pak and stab some of the gawking Irken. At the same time he was clinging to the thought that this maggot was just lying. A prank, nothing more! They just wanted him to lose his cool and embarrass himself in front of the Tallest.

But this cold horror wouldn’t leave him as he punched the elevator’s control panel, digging his claws into the palm of his hand while the elevator moved awfully slowly towards the Bridge. When it stopped he bolted through the doors to the Bridge looking for his leaders. He spotted Tallest Red and walked up to him. Red noticed him and smiled with arms open.

    “Ah, invader Set! It’s so good to see you return fit and well! We-“ – “Forgive me, my almighty Tallest, but I need to speak to you… about my test subject.” he blurted out. Red cocked a brow on that interruption but nodded slowly.

    “You must’ve already heard of it then… A tragic incident - sadly; a really skilled fighter, you've got to hand her that.”

Set went pale. All strength seemed to leave his body.

    “What happened? Did she… did she really  _attack_  you?” he croaked and despised the upset sound of his voice.

    “As much as it  _hurts_  me to say this… yes, she did assault Tallest Purple; it all went so quickly that the guards didn’t even see her coming. You can check the records if you want to.” Red added after giving him an appraising peer. Set shook his head and the cold inside of him clawed into his insides like the talons of a wrathful beast.

    “But… she wouldn’t… she would never dare-“

The Tallest folded his hands, fingertips dabbing against each other.

    “Apparently she had no idea that her actions would directly redound on you.” He stated with a ponderous pause.

Now Set raised his head in concern and start, and reflexively kneeled before the Tallest, bowing his head in subservience.

    “My Tallest, I- forgive…”

But Red smiled briefly and waved him off.

    “Don’t worry, invader, your reputation is well intact; if anything it’s probably even greater than ever. Your human surely did enjoy a thorough training from you. We wanted to have mercy on her, since she was the slave of our best invader. So we let her decide if she wanted to fight. And oh, did she fight… a whole pack of defect SIR units got destroyed by her and not even a scratch.

But that wasn’t enough for her - she wanted to fight another round. We tried to talk her out of this but she was so hell-bent on fighting that she threatened to attack Purple a second time so she would have to restore your honor once more. Afraid she might hurt him severely this time we allowed it. She defeated the two Vorn… and then the Butcher. It was a… hard fight. We tried to reanimate her… but she seemed to have lost her will to live. Maybe she wanted to die.

What a shame… but you should be proud to have called such a brave slave your own. As a compensation for your loss we will gladly transfer a considerable bonus to your account. And if there's anything else we can do for you...”

Set had been listening quietly, antennae limply hanging from his head. The satchel on his shoulder was about to fall off and he pushed it back up automatically before he saluted and turned on his heel.

    “Thank you, my Tallest. I apologize, but I’m… tired from my mission.” He muttered soundlessly and left the Bridge.

    “You are forgiven.” Red returned with a sly grin.

   


Set opened the door to his quarter and stood still in the entrance. He felt strangely empty and almost expected to hear the sound of bare feet tapping on the metal floor, followed by a quiet laughter.

But it remained silent. Dead silent. He had forgotten SIR, the robot stood quietly beside him.

Slowly he walked inside and towards the thing that had caught his attention. Jenna’s backpack was still leaning against the bed, some clothes scattered around it, the note he had left for her lay on the blanket. He wanted to destroy it. Why hadn’t he woken her to say her goodbye or even take her with him?

Hesitating he brushed over that baggy pullover she’d worn. His antennae noticed he smell on it and the hollowness inside of him turned into an unpleasant sting. Then he spotted something that was sticking out of the backpack and reached for it.

Curiously he opened the sketchbook and froze as if the thing would bite him. He recognized himself, sleeping, lying on the side. Jenna had drawn him, quite good actually. He hadn’t known that she could do something like that.

The sketchbook slipped his hand and he sank back on the bed. Set felt sick, his body heavy and not obeying him properly. He was tired and yet he didn’t want to sleep.

SIR approached him and his eye flashed, a silent pleading for attention.

    “What is it, SIR?” Set muttered uninterested and was right now playing with the thought of searching for the Prerk ship to maybe rough them up.

    “Master… my scanners picked up a signal of the human’s suit.” The robot responded but the Irk simply whipped his antennae.

    “Probably in the trash, we don’t need it anymore.”

    “Additionally it is sending a second signal.” SIR continued undeterred. “A life signal.”

Set shot up abruptly and stared at his SIR unit in disbelief.

    “What?! That’s impossible! The Tallest said… he said...” he opened his Pak and ejected a scanner of his own. Quickly he called the suit’s tracker signature and opened his mouth speechlessly. “But…  _how_ …” – “The signal is coming from a remote wing of the MedBay.” SIR added. Set was already on his feet and hurried towards the elevator.

Could it really be? Or was the suit just malfunctioning? But the signal was too steady to just be an error. And it was getting weaker by the minute.

It took some time, way too much time, until they found the room from which the signal was coming.

Panting the Irk paused in front of the shut metal door and suddenly hesitated to open it. What if there was just a torn, empty suit in there? Then he hammered his fist on the panel and squeezed through the opening door.

A second time this day he stopped and froze on the spot

There she was lying on a bier, completely covered in blood. He couldn’t distinguish which part of it was Irken and which human. The suit was indeed destroyed, the cuisses downright shattered and apparently so was her left knee.

He rushed to her side, grabbing her hand and gasping distraught. Her shallow breath brushed over his face and he couldn’t get a hold of his shaking hands as he shook her gently. Her face twitched and the left eye opened, the other stayed closed, crusted in blood. Her gaze was dull and it took her a moment to see clearly. Then the eye widened and she took a shaking breath. A single tear ran over her cheek.

    “S…  _Set_ … oh god…” Jenna’s voice was a thin whisper, more a loud exhale. Set suddenly felt his insides turning to stone and chuting into his throat. He could barely breathe himself and put a finger on her lips.

    “No talking. Just stay awake, you hear me? Stay awake, I’ll take care of you!” he hissed back and turned to SIR without looking back. “SIR, I need her blood. Take the rest from my ship! Hurry!” The robot ran off and Set opened his Pak. A bag fell in his hand, filled with her blood. He always kept one in there since the accident back on Earth.

Jenna’s eye was slowly closing again and he quickly removed the belt from her hip. The suit vanished reluctantly and revealed her mangled body but he still had to tear the remaining clothes from her, leaving her naked on the bier. Now he was able to make out the whole extent of her injuries. First of all she would need the blood!

Set activated the life-support systems of the room and impatiently waited till a cannula stuck in her arm. When he was just connecting the blood-bag to the machine cold, small fingers reached for his arm and he flinched startled.

She looked at him smiling and was moving her lips but he couldn’t make out what she was saying. Quickly he bent over her to order her to stay silent as he heard the words that would haunt him from this moment on.

    “I’m… so happy… that I could… see you… ” but the rest never came. The systems gave a shrill alarm and the faint breathing against his skin seized.

Confused Set perked his antennae and recoiled. Jenna’s open eye didn’t follow his motion.

    “Jenna?” Set shook her. “Wake up.” He shook her again, harder. But she didn’t move. She seemed to have lost her consciousness. “I told you to wake up!”   
  
He smacked her cheek lightly. Nothing. “Damnit, Jenna I  _command_  you to wake up, look at me and tell me what  _happened_!” He was shouting now and had pulled her up. Her right arm was hanging in an unnatural way from her bleeding shoulder as Set pressed her to his chest and emitted an angry cry right next to her ear. But still the human wouldn’t stir.

“Oh no… no, no, don’t you  _dare_!” he took her face in his hands and searched it for any sign of a reaction before he hugged her to his chest again. “No… I  _forbid_  you to die! You  _can’t_  be dead!”   
  
His Pak erupted so fiercely that his vision went black for a second and he groaned at the pain. All eight spider legs shot out, enwrapping the dead human, pressing her even closer to him as he shocked her again. “I. Won’t. Let. You. Leave! You’re  _mine_!”

Another shock, and another; he didn’t care about the damage he was dealing to himself, he would either bring her back or die right here!

He only paused when a hand punched him right in the face and the cold bundle in his arms started to move frantically. At first he thought his shocks had merely stimulated her nerves and was about to try it again, but then he heard a rasping gasp for air. Desperate and hoarse.

She was alive.

Set held her close to his body and used the spider legs to finally start the transfusion-machine. Completely unnoticed SIR came back into the room and connected more units of blood to the machine.

Jenna whined and wanted confused and disoriented to free herself from this constriction she'd woken up in. Did dying mean to be inside a hot, narrow cave? Then she saw light above her and the contours of a rock… no, no it was a head! But she couldn’t tell how far away it was, something was wrong with her eyesight, it wasn’t complete. The light fell on two crimson gems that seemed to move.

The next thing she saw were the flashing teeth of a shark; a radiant smile, a mean, triumphing grin. 

It was an unearthly, nightmarish sight but for her this grin meant that she wasn’t dead, and even if she was, it wasn’t all that bad because the person that smile belonged to had followed her to the other side. And she returned it wanly. To Jenna this face straight from a nightmare was the most beautiful in the universe.

Feebly she touched Set’s cheek, had to make sure he was really there. When her hand didn’t go right through him she sobbed overwhelmed and laughed out. The Irk did the same, cupping her face in his big hands with a relieved gasp.

For a moment they just stayed like this, staring at each other and then Jenna threw herself against him, so violently that he almost lost his balance, clung to his uniform and cried unrestrained.  A flash of pain went through her shoulder with every sob that shook her, her head, her knee and her whole body.

Set embraced her cautiously, reminded of how severely she was injured. He had to treat her wounds right away or she would die again! That realization struck him like a punch. She had  _died_  in his arms just now! And it would happen again if he didn’t care for her.

    “Ssshhh… still now. I’m here for you. And I will patch you up.” He carefully pushed her back and examined her injuries. He had to make sure they wouldn’t get worse. The fact that she could sit upright like that was a miracle. He reached in one of the drawers behind her, pulling out a syringe with painkillers.

“I need to reset your arm. Clench your teeth.” He grabbed her arm and stabilized her with his spider legs as he injected the pain reliever. He didn’t want to give her much time for thinking about the pain as long as she was this confused.

“Hold your breath.”

Jenna inhaled and her shoulder exploded in blaring white pain. The scream escaped her hand that she had clasped over her mouth. But Set took her hand in his and kissed her. “Attagirl… brave little human.” He mumbled tensed and cowered before the bier to look over her knee. It looked really bad, the bone structure completely mashed into a bloody mass beyond repair; there was only one thing that could help.

Set sighed and rubbed his eyes. Jenna wanted to ask what was wrong but he already lifted her up in his arms and carried her over to a machine that looked like the Synthesizer. As gently as he could he sat her down on it and grabbed her good leg. On the push of a button the scanner opened and folded itself around her knee. “Scoot a bit to the front. Yeah, that’s better. Stay still.” – “What are you doing?” she asked faint, silent tears running from her eyes. Her right eye was spilling a red liquid that washed down the crusted blood.

Set gave an impatient whip with his antennae while he manned the gadget.

    “Copying. Hold still, it will hurt despite the painkillers.”

Jenna pressed her lips together and shut her eye again. The new blood made her feel a little less  _dead_  but with it the pain came back as well. Hopefully she would lose her consciousness first. Set started the machine. It reminded her of an MRI-scan as the machine moved over her knee, stopped and backed up only to scan another layer. Either it didn’t hurt or the pain was simply topped by the pain in her burnt lower leg.

After a few minutes it folded apart and Set lifted her briefly to position her crushed knee on the scanner. He put a hand on her cheek.

“Are you ready? Cling to my hand if it’s too much.” Slowly he pushed the second button and watched the machine. The synthesizing began from the inside; little lasers and needles removed the shattered little bones, replacing them with artificial ones made from carbon-based replica. Synthetic cartilage, tissue, ligaments and synovial fluid made from Pakrit were injected along with little doses of Pakrit to speed up the natural healing process. It felt as if her knee was turned from the inside out.

She didn’t scream because she was simply too weak, but her hand dug so deep into Set’s arm that she tore the skin open with her nails. The Irk didn’t bat an eye and just leaned his forehead against her temple, his free arm gently stroking over her bare back. He felt the scars the Vorn and the suit had left on it.

Why had she been here? Half dead and yet obviously still alive… why had nobody activated the life-support system? It’d had at least put her out of imminent danger.

A gruesome thought crossed his mind and the hard lump sprung back into his throat. If he had finished his mission just an hour later… Set’s hand wrapped possessively around Jenna’s waist and he placed a kiss on her temple. Her grip loosened when she fainted for a second but in this moment the scanner turned back to repair the next layer. Now she did scream, throwing her head back and her whole body tensed from the pain.

Set knew what she was going through. He had many injuries like hers repaired this way in his trainee days. Even for him this had been a very agonizing experience.

The machine finished the treatment with a bleep and Jenna slumped panting against his chest. The Irk kissed her again, pushing a third button; it wasn’t over yet.

Little spider legs shot from the Synthesizer, attaching a form of splint to her leg. Another metal arm wrapped the silvery dressing around the still raw and bleeding knee. A moveable framework was mounted over the tight fitting splint that was fixed to her leg with several bolts, to allow a moderate movement through its integrated hydraulic systems.

Both human and Irk alike caught their breath for a second and eyed the patched up knee. Jenna raised a hand to wipe her cheeks. Set injected another unit of pain killers in her arm and turned her head to examine the right eye that she kept closed. Through the softened blood crusts he could already see that something wasn’t right at all. But he was too worn out to deal her any more pain. Moreover Jenna appeared stable enough to not die under his hands again and the analgesics would do their part.

He stood up and supported himself on the bier, sighing loudly.

    “What happened?” he asked with his back turned to her and Jenna gave a harsh laugh, surprisingly loud. Set crinkled his antennae. He could literally feel her hatred.

    “They… tried to kill me… made me practically storm into their goddamn  _setup_.” she grunted.

Set wheeled around, teeth bared into a vicious snarl, spider legs ejected ready to fight, ready to kill.

    “ _Who_?! Who would  _dare_  to- “ – “Your leaders.” She interrupted his hissing aridly and gave him a cold stare out of her single eye while the blood was still dripping from the stab wound that had pierced her right shoulder. Set recoiled, shooting her a doubting glance.

    “This… this can’t be true. They would never…” – “It’s the  _truth_! And I can prove it. Just go and ask a prisoner named Jak locked up in the cell block where they would throw me in between the fights without treating my wounds!” her voice grew louder, her rage and her despair surfacing again in a blaze of anger. Set shook his head and frowned.

    “But…” he started but she made a brusque gesture to shut him up.

    “Did you actually take a look at my  _eyes_  for a second?” she asked, now definitely angry at him and pointed at her shut eye. “If you haven’t noticed already, one of them is fucking  _missing_! I look like I’ve been run over by a car, I have burnt leg, and a  _shattered_  one! Shit, I  _died_  in your arms! So don’t you fucking dare to call me a  _liar_ , Set!” she shouted at him and fought with the tears why she turned away, wrapping her arms protectively around her chest, flinching at the pain.

He had reached out to touch her but her defensive posture made him take a step back. He had seen her go through many dangerous and precarious situation, had tortured her, threatened her family and almost stabbed her to death. But never before he had felt this hated and despised by her.

And he didn’t understand why.

    “My Tallest would never cross me like that… you- you must’ve misunderstood something-“

Jenna threw the empty syringe after him and slid down from the scanner. Her splinted leg immediately caved in when her foot touched the ground but she grabbed the edge of the machine and caught herself.

Set hadn’t expected that at all and the glass case hit him right in the face. A thin trickle of blood ran from a cut over his eyebrow as it shattered and he made a surprised, pained sound. He was so baffled anyway that he simply let her next words crash over him and just stared at her dumbfounded.

    “Your  _Tallest_  are the most disgusting, sickening pieces of  _shit_  in the whole galaxy! They tortured an innocent servant, a former scientist they have had convicted because of her perception, before my eyes! Out of  _boredom_! Out of  _fun_! They almost killed her and I was the only one who had the balls to stop them! I just pushed this bastard away from Ria and nothing more!” she cried out as the memory and the shame came back to her and she laughed a cold, hard laugh full of pain. “Set… they tried to  _rape_  me… they had been after me this whole time… and… w-when I fought back because I simply couldn’t let them defile me like this… they threw me into their arena.”

Her power was leaving her again and Jenna sank against the machine, let herself sink down to the ground and hid her face in her hands.

“I fought. When they told me they’d kill you if I refused I couldn’t do anything else. I didn’t want you to get killed because of my fault! I wanted to fight for your honor and I goddamn won. I mangled all these SIR units myself. And what did your  _oh-so-mighty_  Tallest do?” she raised her head and returned his gaze waiting for an answer.

When Set didn’t reply she stood up again under strain and walked up to him; staggering, but she was standing.

He wanted to catch her and put her on the bier but she smacked his stretched out hand aside with unexpected strength, her eye piercing him. “What did they tell you?”, she wanted to know with lowered voice, “What did that red-eyed bitch tell you, huh?”

He hit her. Not even hard and she knew that it was a reflex, his goddamn Code that made him do it, but it showed her quite plainly that Set wasn’t Ria. That he would never be able to think or feel like she had.

That he would never understand her.

Jenna looked at the blood stains on the floor and felt a single trickle drip from her lip. Set drew back, staring at his hand.

    “I…” he couldn’t say more, Jenna turned her back on him and called on SIR.

    “SIR, I need the medical stapler. And dressing… thank you.” She said emotionless as the robot surprisingly enough handed her the stuff and she went about treating the wounds she had left.

Anger blazed inside of him. How could she dare? He had just now saved her life!

When he did a step towards her and grabbed her arm she let him turn her around without protest.

    “My Tallest… don’t  _lie_  to me… they  _trust_  me!” he hissed barely in control and bent over her menacingly. Jenna looked up to him unimpressed, slowly shaking her head with a cynical smile.

    “Then go to them and tell them I’m alive. You should really watch their expression. It’s quite funny to see them so baffled and on the brink of freaking out.” She replied mockingly and wanted to turn to the wound in her shoulder again when Set grabbed her and put her on the bier.  Without another word he stormed out of the door and locked it behind him. SIR was left behind with her and his lens widened in utter surprise.

Jenna groaned, from pain and because she was still convinced that this was all a bad joke.

Closing a wound yourself isn’t easy when you have to twist your neck because your right eye has been stabbed out, and more painful than you can imagine. Several times she paused trying to catch her breath and every time it cost her more overcoming to set the pistol on the wound’s edges and pull the trigger.

SIR watched her struggle silently and turned around, his scanners had found something interesting and he searched for it in one of the lower shelves.

The human slumped back on the bier with a choked cry and threw the stapler carelessly away. Then the robot jumped on the litter next to her to give her something. Jenna grabbed the doohickey and held it before her face. It looked like a little, metal starfish with a strange, round structure at its bottom and six small bent arms at the sides.

    “What is that, SIR?” she asked confused and the robot snatched it back, jumped on her chest and bent over her, the lens glowing red. She wanted to sit up startled but he pressed her down and activated the metal star. The round structure on the bottom spun around and opened. SIR implied her to lay still while he brought it closer to her intact eye.

Panicking Jenna held her breath when the cold metal touched her eye. The rim of the opening wrapped tightly around her eyeball and she felt it adjusting to it, measuring it. Then a laser shot and glared her for a second. SIR removed it again and pushed around on it before placing it back on her face, this time over her dead eye. That reminded Jenna of the Synthesizer from before and she wanted to pull it off when the little extensions wrapped swiftly around her head and fastened the contraption to her face like a futuristic eyepatch.

The feared pain didn’t come. She felt over the eyepatch.

    “I suppose this thing is going to make me a new eyeball, hm?” she asked and hid her relief. Ending up half blind was a terrifying mental image. SIR nodded.

“How long is it going to take?”

    “Optical organs are much more complicated than the rest of a body. It will take longer.” He buzzed shortly and jumped off the bier. Jenna stayed. She was completely exhausted and sleep seemed like a damn good idea. But… what if the Tallest would send somebody to kill her for good while Set was gone?

    “SIR? Would you mind keeping an audio receptor on someone approaching? I suppose Set would be very disappointed if he comes back and I’m suddenly dead for real this time.”

The robot made a reluctant sound but Jenna was sure he was instructed to guard her anyway. So she turned on her side and was almost immediately fast asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (again, this pic was finished before the chapter was x'D damn that's an old picture right there~)
> 
> Set is confused and angry... what will he do next? I'm confused and angry, too right now... I go get some ice-cream


	24. Wounds - Pt. 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Check out the C U R I O S I T Y Playlist on 8Tracks!  
> http://8tracks.com/thetruemek/c-u-r-i-o-s-i-t-y

**\- 13 Wounds -**  


##### Part 2

  
Set’s first and instinctive reaction would have been to return to Tallest Red immediately and ask him why Jenna was alive when he had told him she was already dead. But when he stood in front of the door to the Bridge again he stopped hesitating. Jenna’s words were still echoing in his mind. Ask for a prisoner named Jak… that sounded like a Vortian name. What did she have to do with a Vort?

Set’s curiosity won and he decided to pay the prison block a visit.

He noticed the stench and his antennae pressed flatly against his head as he passed the security doors to the prison wing, what didn't pose a problem because of his high rank. The guards at the door exchanged a look before they saluted and asked him about his objective.

    “I’m looking for a Vort named Jak. I need to interrogate him in a serious matter.” He answered as calm and imperious as he managed to despite the turmoil inside his mind. One of the guards nodded and survilely asked him to follow.

    “Right this way, sir.”

Set slowly walked behind the smaller Irk and watched his surrounding alertly. Many of these prisoners he had locked in here himself and hateful eyes glared at him from every corner.

At the far end of the cell block the guard stopped and pointed at a cell. A lanky Vort sat legs crossed against the wall and seemed to have expected him the way his yellow eyes flashed and he grinned crookedly.

    “I take it from here.” Set signified the guardsman and he left with a bow.

When he was gone Jak crossed his arms and leaned his head back to scrutinize the tall invader.

    “An’ yer gotta be this Set guy… never would’ve thought yer such a tall slagger. How’s Jenna? If yer here yer gotta have talked to’er; which means the lass’s livin'.”

The Irk stretched his antennae scandalized.

    “You dare to speak directly to an invader of my rank?! You must be really desperate to die, Vort!” he snarled and ejected his spider legs. Jak stayed unimpressed and shrugged.

    “Son, if yer would’ve seen what I saw the last couple o’ days yer would be havin’ some darn dark thoughts yerself. So; may I ask how my lovely friend is doin’, oh  _grrrreat_ invader?” the Vort replied scornful and Set narrowed his eyes leery.

    “ _Friend_? What are you implying with that?” But Jak stayed silent and kept looking at him biding. Set growled and tried to compose himself.

“She’s alive. And her wounds are treated. But I need  _answers_. When she was down in here with you… I just have to know what happened!” he felt the urge to pull his antennae for the desperation in his voice but he didn’t want to give the Vort the satisfaction. He raised his hands.

    “What  _happened_? Well, Iunno what happened before she got here but she was thrown in this here cell together with a she-Irk, right next to me.” He pointed with a thumb over to the side and Set stepped closer to the empty cell. He saw Irken blood, a lot of it and even black blood which was formed upon a Pak being ripped off an Irk. And indeed, he found a severed Pak in a corner. Set grabbed it with a spider leg and picked it up. It was empty. Something had emptied every drop of Pakrit out of it.

Set noticed a broken artery. Maybe stabbed?

He looked around further and finally saw the other blood; red blood. Human blood…

Shaken he turned around to Jak and kneeled down in front of his cell, the Pak still in his hands.

    “What happened?” he asked again, quietly, and this time he didn’t care. Jak rested back against the wall.

    “Jenna protected this defect she-Irk, Ria, from yer Tallest’s wrath, 't least that’s what Ria told me when the human was fightin’ her first round. We could watch it on that screen back there. They made her fight the crazy units. Not a darn scratch! But then they locked her up again an’ she ought to fight another round.

Iunno if yer can even remotely imagine the despair she felt. I know a lotta aliens but I never met one that could cry this heart-rendin’ like she did. I would’ve loved to break down these darn plasma bars to soothe her, to tell her everythin’s gonna be alright… or to end it all, just to safe her the trouble goin' through all that pain again.

But then came the fight against those two Vorn. Nasty bastards. She sent the first one flyin’ with a fine punch and ripped his jaws apart with her bare hands! The second one was a bit tougher, though. Grabbed her leg an’ mauled it. Her armor overheated an’ burnt her whole darn leg. An’ what she do? Jams her thumbs right into the beast’s eyes an’ sent it howlin’. She limps over to it, jumpin’, landin’ on his neck-crest. With a shard from her own boilin’ hot armor she carved out his brain. The Vorn rears an’ starts clawin’ at her back but she wouldn’t stop till he’s dead.” his voice rang from the emotion as he remembered the fight.

Set had been quietly listening and only his whipping antennae showed his aggravation. Jak shook his head and sighed.

“She was so darn brave. So damn strong. She even managed to walk right up to the Tallest an’ challenge them up close. All that desperation an’ fear turned to hate. The guards had to wrestle her down an' carry her back here.”

Again the Vort stopped and stared at the Pak in Set’s hands.

    “What happened next?! Speak, damn you!” he hissed but Jak was suddenly far away from him.

    “Ria… she wanted to help her. Said it was her fault. First she patched her up best she could but Jenna was sentenced to fight the Butcher next. That bastard would’ve torn her to bits in her state. An execution plus bloodbath if yer want. Ria talked somethin’ crazy about the Pakrit and how life forms react to it… an’ she ripped it off.”

Set felt a cold shiver running down his spine all the way to his own Pak. The thought alone…

“She made Jenna drink all o’ it. Even when she was dyin’ in agony she forced her to drink even the last drop. After she died Jenna wasn’t the same. The Pakrit changed her, gave her all these scary abilities… the strength, the intelligence an' even darn telekinetic powers. But she was also cold.

The fight was bloody and brutal. I figure yer’ve seen her eye an’ her knee? When the Tallest announced that she wouldn’t fight again her fans”, he air quoted that, “went completely bonkers. They wanted her to get reinstalled and healed an’ so on so she could fight some more. Since then I’ve never seen her again but I knew yer leaders were scared o’ her. An’ that they wanted the poor gal dead!”

Set growled:

    “You don’t know that!”

Now Jak bared his teeth angrily, leaning forward as if he was about to jump to his feet.

    “I watched o'er her, listened to her callin’ yer name in her bloody coma! She thought the Tallest had sent you away to kill both of ya! An’ it was  _yer_ arse she went through hell fer, because yer would’ve get killed if she’d refused to! An’ yer even dare to doubt her? I thought she meant somethin’ to ya… she was so darn sure that yer  _different_. But in the end yer just another one of their brainless dogs.”

A sharp spider leg shot into the cell and grabbed his throat.

But the deadly blow didn’t come. He just stared at him. Jak didn’t struggle. “I know yer have the means to get to know if she’s really tellin’ the truth… an’ I know yer don’t want to do it. But yer should hurry, invader. Once they know she’s still alive they’re gonna kill both of ya. Especially yaself cause yer brought her here… the first real threat for the bloody Irken Empire.” He grinned as Set let go off him and recoiled. Jak had never before seen an Irk that ready to run. Good.

“Oh, an’ tell her I’m proud o’ her!” he called after the invader when he ran off.

Set didn’t care about the guards at the security door, he knew now how to get to know what really had happened! Even if Jenna would probably never forgive him for it… but if it meant to prove that she was telling the truth…

He returned to his ship to quickly grab what he needed before he snuck back into the MedBay, always looking over his shoulder to make sure nobody was following him. Despite that he almost bashed the door in and Jenna started from her sleep alarmed.

    “Set… what…” she mumbled but he was already grabbing her, bending her neck back, and pulled something from his Pak that made her panic on sight. Jenna kicked him, trying to protect her head with both her hands but Set was way too strong. “ _No_! No, Set, please don’t! _Don’t_! You  _promised_  me!” she screamed in horror but he stayed adamant.

    “I’m sorry… but I have to know the truth…” he returned tensed and placed the Mnemograph on her head. The conduits buried into her skin and the electricity numbed her immediately as Set entered her mind and sifted through her memories from the moment he had left her. Because of the remaining Pakrit in her blood the connection was much more deeper than the first time, fusing their minds into a single conscience and Set experienced firsthand what she had gone through.

He felt her fear and confusion when he was nowhere to be found, the blind panic in which she ran searching for him. The joy she felt when meeting Ria, the free Irk and former scientist as he learned from her thoughts, and he recognized her from his trainee days. Then the fury with which she sprinted towards Tallest Purple, pushing him aside; the shock, the shame and the nausea as the Tallest bent over her and touched her the way he used to but it felt wrong and so disgusting!

Set overcame the limits of his Pak for a brief moment as his mind connected with the human's and was able to feel. Jenna’s emotions were his own. And it tormented him. He lived through every second of the fights, felt every injury as his own and the hatred against the Tallest that had been so unbelievably cruel. He was suffocated by the cold hopelessness of a dying soul.

Then he read Jenna’s thoughts from the moment of their reunion, the moment she opened her eye and knew she was save and he found himself overwhelmed by a feeling so warm, so strange and unknown that it made him dizzy and suddenly it was too much for his brain to handle.

Almost violently he tore himself from the mental connection and stumbled back against the wall were he simply sank to the floor and stared at her. Jenna clutched her bleeding head and groaned from the pain. The brutal ripping off of the Mnemograph had left deep holes in her skull, the dripping blood stuck her hair together into dark strands.

    “ _Shit_ …!” she burst out sobbing and bent over, her arms protectively wrapped around her naked body. Her shoulders were twitching, she wanted to throw up but there was just nothing left inside her stomach.

Set struggled to stand up and slowly walked over to her. He was completely taken aback; the certainty that his leaders had  _wanted_  to kill Jenna on a whim, the only being he really trusted and actually liked, knocked his whole belief down. Now he felt a rising fury and the wish to take her far, far away from here!

    “SIR… get everything out of my quarters and to the ship, but be careful that nobody sees you. Take the vents.” He ordered his trusty robot and caught Jenna in his arms. His lips touched her head and he tasted her blood. She took a shaking breath, still haunted by her own memories. SIR vanished without a sound and Set calculated the time he would need to get all of their stuff to the ship.

“I’m sorry… I am so, so sorry.” He whispered with eyes closed and trembled as he saw the images over and over again as the Tallest tried to subdue the writhing human. Had it been the same with him? Had she felt the same panic and disgust when he had thrown her to the ground and bent over her?

Set growled lowly and pressed her closer to his body. He had done so much more to her than the Vorn, the Butcher and even the Tallest. But he had made it up to her, hadn’t he? He wasn't sure...

Jenna sniffed and tentatively returned his embrace as if it was wrong. But when he lifted her chin to kiss her ever so gently she pulled herself up on him and clung to his uniform as if her life depended on it.

Set extended the kiss and licked the blood off her lip, also his fault. When she gasped for air he let her breathe and just hugged her to his chest. “How can you still kiss me like that? I don’t get it…” he muttered while she caught her breath but Jenna just shook her head.

    “Take me away from here, Set. Please take me away from these monsters…” Her pleading was so faint, so frantic that the anger in him was fueled to raging hatred.

    “We’re as good as gone.” He droned and lifted her up. “Hold on tight.”

She wrapped her arms around his neck and Set opened the door, his spider legs raised over his head embattled. The Irk standing right in front of the room couldn’t even scream surprised as the metal spear already pierced his throat. With a death-rattle the guard sank to the ground and Set ripped out his spider leg on the run. Jenna clasped tighter and ignored the blood splashing on her cheek.

Two more Irken with shock-spears were waiting around the next corner. She already thought about slipping out of his arms to leave Set more room to fight but he just roared terrifying, lunged forward and impaled both of them with four spider legs. The Irk pushed his slain brethren out of his way and ran along without glancing back.

The elevator was locked but even that didn’t pose an obstacle for the livid elite-invader: Set’s metal arms formed a rectangle in front of them, the tips started glowing blue. A hot laser-beam shot the doors to pieces and he jumped headfirst down into the dark hoistway. The spider legs braced against the walls and slowed the fall into a sliding yet Jenna felt her heart pounding from the start.

At the dock’s level he stopped and pushed the doors open to scout things out before he let them snap back into place, adjusting her in his arms.

    “Too many of them… it’d be better we take a more subtle route.” Set grunted and tore a metal covering out of the wall right under the doors, as big as a grown man. With utmost care he shoved her into the dark tunnel and followed her whereas he really had to keep his head down. He observed the darkness in front of them for a second and swiftly ejected his armor that encased his body. Lastly he pulled the covering back in place and welded the edges together so that nobody could follow them from this direction.

Jenna listened alert but couldn’t make out anything. Set squeezed past her and took her hand into his.

“We have to keep it down… my ship is about 5000 sik in this direction. Come on.” Jenna couldn’t remember how many centimeters that was but she followed Set as quietly as possible; easy with bare feet.

The tunnel kept going through the whole length of the dock, multiple corridors branched off of it into a maze of tunnels. Jenna was about to ask what they were used for when a tiny Irk walked out of one and bumped right into Set’s leg. He looked up and wanted to scream startled just as the invader pressed a sharp spider leg to his throat. He growled something in Irken; she couldn’t understand it without her translator, but the sense was clear: One sound and you’re going to be just another bloodstain under my boot. The little Irk nodded with teary eyes. Set walked on and Jenna smiled at him apologizing. For a second she remembered that she was completely naked but that was secondary now.

After a good hundred meters Set stopped and pointed at the ceiling.

“The ship has to be just ahead. Let me check if we’re going to get trouble.” He hissed and lifted one of the cover panels with a spider leg. His antennae shot up as he glanced through the slit. “Nobody in the immediate perimeter around the ship… good.” He grabbed her around her waist and hoisted her through the opening.

She wasn’t exactly fond of the idea to expose the naked, unarmed human inside a hangar full of guards and invaders first – however, he jumped out of the tunnel right behind her, picking her up again as he already darted towards his ship. Jenna looked up and realized for the first time how giant Set’s spaceship was in reality, almost the size of a mini cruiser. Shots were fired immediately and he activated his comm. “SIR, open the loading-hatch and start up take-off sequence!” he shouted into the microphone and held tighter to Jenna’s middle as a group of soldiers approached from the other side of the ship, armed with rifles instead of spears.

Set risked a glance up and ran faster. She felt how his grip shifted around her and two spider legs positioned themselves under her arms. “Don’t move!” he called and threw her in the air. Jenna gave an alarmed scream when the ship’s belly came flying at her in a split second. Set grinned wickedly when the guards stopped on the spot and aimed confused at the flying human. He sprinted forward and dropped on his back, sliding over the ground between them. In his motion he snatched one of the rifles from the guards and rolled to his feet in a smooth movement. His four spider legs caught Jenna in midair and put her down on her feet behind him.

Flabbergasted the guards stumbled backwards whereat Set shook his head and smiled grimly.

“Wrong way.” He said cynically in her language and pointed up. The Irken followed his gesture and stared right into the lit up engine of the ship. Set wheeled around and ran off, Jenna right on his heels. Behind them the plasma-fueled engine turned the soldiers into ashes while in front of them a hatch opened and a cargo crane lowered.

Set ignored it and again grabbed Jenna around her waist to climb inside of the ship using only his spider legs.

He let go of her as soon as the hatch was closed again and sprinted towards the command bridge, all the while shouting commands at SIR. A sudden jolt of the ship threw her to the ground and she struggled to get back up when a second impact hurled her into the opposite corner of the cargo compartment. The wound on her shoulder burst open again and her vision blackened for a second while she heard a frenzy of noise coming from outside. Then it was quiet all of a sudden, only the droning engine buzzed.

When Jenna was sure that she wouldn’t snap her neck from another jolt she got up cautiously and limped towards the door, her splinted knee was really taking all that running badly. Just as the door slid back Set came through the hallway, a little bit breathless but his eyes glistened in triumph.

    “We made it! We escaped!” he huffed and reached out for her to pull her into his embrace. Then he noticed the blood streaming from her shoulder and sighed. “Oh no… you’re bleeding  _again_. I leave you alone for  _one_ minute…” he smiled wryly and picked her up when she shot him and angry glare. “Too soon?” he added and Jenna stuck out her tongue.

    “Positive.” She replied and hissed from the pain as another metal clamp loosened.

Set carried her into the medical room and placed her down on the bier. She felt goose bumps all over her body and quickly rubbed her arms; running around butt naked had made her warm down. The Irk watched her intrigued but when she sneezed he recoiled with a start.

    “What the hell was that?!” he hissed alarmed and Jenna drew her legs to her chest to keep the remaining body heat. Also her burnt leg was itching terribly. But she snickered at his reaction.

    “I’m just cold… I hope I don’t get sick.” She mumbled and sniffed as if to underline her words. Set made a face.

    “No… we certainly don’t want that…” he growled and passed her a blanket in which she wrapped up in.

    “So… where are we  _going_ now?” she asked nervously while he tended to her open wound.

    “Right now? Just as far away as possible. I thought about stopping at that one camping-planet I know…” he answered and frowned as he began to pull the clamps out of her skin what made her hiss in pain. Luckily the pain killers were still working a bit.

“Ow! Do you  _have_  to pull them all out?” she snarled and bit her tongue whimpering. Set just grunted back.

    “You stitched the wound all wrong, no wonder it burst open again! Now keep still.” He warned her and grabbed the stapler. Jenna knew that kind of pain very well by now and could stand it more or less without wincing. She stared at her slave brand when she suddenly remembered something; yet she wasn’t entirely sure if she should tell him about it right now.

Maybe tomorrow, she was just so tired.

Set was finally done stitching her back together and sighed contented, leaning his forehead against hers and closing his eyes. He was most likely just as exhausted as she was. To be perfectly honest he had seen and experienced everything she had firsthand from her memories. Jenna wrapped her arms around him and propped her head against his chest. He put his chin on her head and returned the embrace.

They simply stayed like this for a while and were glad for the other one’s presence. But eventually another itching rushed through her leg and she bent down to scratch it. Set noticed it and furrowed his brows in admonition.

“Cut it out, it’ll become infected.” He muttered and took one of the dressing kits from a shelf to treat her scorched leg with it. The cooling effect and the pain killers in it made her moan in relief. The Irk’s antennae perked up at the sound and he gave her the eye. But Jenna shook her head with an angry sound, raising a hand as if to smack him but then she just wagged her finger at him.

    “Don’t even think about it, Set! As long as I’m such a physical wreck I’m glad for not falling apart from simply breathing too hard!” she snapped and wrapped the blanket tighter around her body. He pulled a sulky face and turned around with a snarl. She caught his hand. “But… a bath would be nice right now, don’t you think?”

 

  

 

"A Broken Promise" and "Irken Wrath" by TheturemeK

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sooo... Set basically slaughtered a bunch of guards, violated invader protocol and is a deserter to the Empire's cause..  
> YAY! Vive la révolution *angry french noises*
> 
> And what will the Tallest do now? They just lost their best invader and the only leverage they had for him.   
> Find out next time on Space Douches 8D


	25. Wounds - Pt. 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Check out the C U R I O S I T Y Playlist on 8Tracks!  
> http://8tracks.com/thetruemek/c-u-r-i-o-s-i-t-y

**\- 13 Wounds -**   
  


##### Part 3

  
She was right, a bath was the best the two of them had have for a long time. Lazily they lay across from each other in the tub and from time to time Set would pelt her with the warm liquid, snickering, to rinse her hair of the crusted blood, as he uttered in his defense. Jenna just enjoyed the warmth and silence. Suddenly Set perked up his antennae and spoke in his comm.

    “SIR? Go get my bag and the cigarettes from the human’s backpack.” He thought for a second. “Oh yeah, and something to put the gross ashes into.”

Then he sank back and grinned at Jenna. She was distracted by her eye patch and didn’t pay any attention to him. His grin turned into a pout.

A particularly big hand full of washing gel hit her right in the face and she spat out to get it out of her mouth. Her spit was immediately enclosed by a bubble and floated up and away.

    “ _Geez_ , Set! What is it?” she coughed annoyed and wiped the rest out of her good eye. He nodded towards the door that just opened and let SIR enter who was completely overloaded. Set jumped out of the bathtub and took some of the things from him before he let himself fall into the tub again. Alas with enough force to almost drown Jenna and set the bathroom under water – or washing gel. But he seemed to feel too good about himself to really care and passed her a cigarette.

She huffed and tried to dry her fingers before taking it. While they smoked she watched the puddle which slowly dissolved into small drips that sluggishly floated towards the ceiling.

“How safe are we, Set? I thought you said that your Pak also functioned as a tracker to locate you… won’t the Tallest find us?” she asked carefully when he dug around in the bag SIR had brought along.

    “Not if we’re away far enough and I don’t contact them over the ship’s comm. Here, I brought this along for you.” He stretched out his closed hand and Jenna opened hers. A necklace fell into her palm, made from a thin metal thread out of tiny segments and a strange stone as pendant. She raised the stone before her eye and took a closer look.

It was only partly cut out of the raw, black stone surrounding it and changed its colors every few seconds. Fascinated she rolled the gem between her fingers and watched the marvelous play of colors.

    “Oh Set… it’s so pretty! What kind of stone is that’?” she asked curiously and the Irken took it in his hand.

    “Dilamite, it’s actually a material used in engine-cores. Watch this…” he quickly rubbed the stone in his hands, flicked against it a few times and dropped it. But instead of falling into the bathtub the gem caught its fall a few inches above the surface and floated on the spot, spinning and glowing. Jenna’s excited sound made him grin proudly and his antennae whipped at the high tone.    

    “This is amazing! And that’s how your ship’s engine works?” she caught the stone in her hand. Set shrugged.

    “Kind of, but that’s way too complicated for you to understand.”

A hand full of washing gel hit him right in the face.

 

* * *

 

After their bath Set paid a visit to the hangar where he started to design another suit for her while she went upstairs to finally put on some clothes. It turned out to be quite hard for her to get into any pants besides her pair of sweatpants with the splint and the framework attached to her knee. Jenna frowned upon realizing that she had lost her hiking trousers and her black top back on the  _Massive_. She would have to get some new clothes somewhere soon.

When she was done dressing and actually looked like a human again she took the elevator back down to join Set on the Bridge. Also she wanted to ask him where her sketchbook had ended up since she couldn’t find it.

The Irken sat in his pilot chair and was apparently poring over something; she looked over his shoulder and saw surprised that he was holding the sketchbook in his hands, browsing through the pages.

    “I wondered where this could have been.” She commented and Set smiled.   

    “I didn’t know you could do that. Although I don’t get why you would draw on something organic like that… it will faint over time.” He pondered and she laughed.

    “Well I couldn’t really carry my computer with me… also I like the feeling of drawing on paper.” The human returned and inspected the stellar map. “Are we there yet? I could really go for something to eat… and I don’t want those chips anymore… I mean actual food.” She muttered and looked over her arms. She had never been really slim but the last days had taken their toll on her body. She had noticed the way her hip bones were poking out in her reflection and even now the sweatpants were dangerously loosely sitting on her hip. Set eyed her. He seemed to have noticed her loss of weight as well because he poked her belly with a frown.

    “You should go get some rest; you’ll need the energy. I make sure nobody’s following us.” He stated and turned towards the map again. Jenna sighed and shrugged. She was indeed tired and hadn’t really slept in the past.

Back in the elevator she suddenly remembered that she had wanted to ask Set about those rebels but she got the feeling it was best to not mention them just yet. Also she wouldn’t tell him about her explosive collar that couldn’t detonate anymore.

As she walked into the bedroom and watched space racing past her like a blurred stream of light she wondered why she was so wary all of a sudden. Set had saved her, had disrespected his leaders and even killed their guards only to protect a half-dead human. But it was exactly this daring rescue that worried her.

Lost in thoughts she sat down in front of the glassed in wall and put her chin in one hand. Ria had told her that Irken were forced into strict behavioral patterns through the Codes. Blocked urges and actions couldn’t be expressed as a result. She doubted that such an act of disobedience and violation of his codes as Set had displayed just then wasn’t normally restricted.

By implication this could only mean that he had somehow broken this restriction! But what alarmed her even more was the possibility that it was only temporary. She feared that he was still loyal to his leaders and might feel the urge to return to them!

Terrified she snapped her eyes back open and paused in chewing her nails. If Set was really intending to get back to them and not willing to go somewhere else out of his own impulse she would have to break away from him. No chance she would get back on the  _Massive_! But how was she supposed to tell him? Worst case was he would simply lock her up until they got back. And then anything could happen… most likely death.

She would have to make a plan. But now she was too worn out and tired too think grand. Jenna slumped on the bed and buried in the blanket. The warmth was nice. The wound in her shoulder was still itching but she was almost asleep. Lastly she thought about how she would’ve liked to ask Ria how to deactivate the Codes so she could see who Set really was.

 

* * *

  
  


She woke up with a headache and a general pain in her body. Groaning she rolled over on her back, the groan intensified as her scars and bruises scraped over the mattress and Jenna was already thinking about turning onto her side again when a heavy arm wrapped around her middle and pulled her into the other direction. Set made kissy-noises and she couldn’t hide a smile while feeling for him still with her eyes closed and placing a kiss on his lips.

    “Are we there yet? Wherever that is.” She asked sleepily and let him draw her to his body without protest.

Set buzzed just as drowsy, burying his face in her hair.

    “Mhmm… look out of the window.” He mumbled, giving her a longer kiss in return. “But not before I’m  _done_  with you.” With this he rolled over on his back, pulling her on his chest; hands gripping her hair he let his tongue dance around her lips until she parted them. Jenna sighed and gently brushed over his antennae, massaging the bases and flicking against the tips. Emitting a low growl Set pulled down his pants and she felt his erection pressing hard against her butt. His inviting glance scooted down and she rolled her eyes while skidding down on him, taking him in her hand.

His growl grew into a hiss as her lips closed around his tip and her tongue circled it. Set moaned and pushed her head down, overcome by a wave of pleasure. But before she could get started for real he already yanked her up again, impatiently pulling on her sweatpants. She helped him, wincing at the sting when the cloth got stuck on the framework, and was pressed onto his hip as soon as her pants were off and he already pushed inside her.

Jenna gasped at the pain and tried to move away but Set just grabbed her hip and thrust into her.

“I can’t wait any longer…” the Irken snarled and dug his fingers into her bum. She gasped, trying to move with him and although her body objected to the pain she let him. His pace quickened, rocking harder he grunted, reaching for her breasts to thumb over her nipples.

Jenna moaned at the touch and wanted to lean back but already didn’t have the strength to hold herself upright and she slumped on his chest.

    “Sorry… I’m just so… worn out.” She whined and gave a surprised sound when Set suddenly turned her over on her back, sitting up a bit to pump into her from behind. She gasped at the sensation, arching her back with a high moan. He grabbed her legs and thrust hard until her moans turned into little screams and Jenna reached back to get to his antennae while Set moved a hand up her leg to run his fingers over her clit.

    “It’s okay… leave it to me.” He growled, sucking at the skin of her neck.

    “Ahh, shit!” she cried out, holding on to his nape as he wrapped his arms around her to keep her in place while he fucked and fingered her till she gave a hoarse moan and he felt her inside contract around his cock so sweetly that he came with a satisfied hiss, thrusting one last time before his vision blackened.

Jenna couldn’t brace for the shock before it hit him, zapping her as well. She just sank back against him and tried to catch her breath. Surprisingly enough the pain in her body was slightly numbed now and she just enjoyed the aftermath of her orgasm.

Set came to again, huffing at her neck and licking the sweat off of it.

    “Did I tell you that I missed you?” he purred and she just laughed exhausted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't worry, this chapter is a bit short, but I'll upload another one tomorrow ;3   
> Double update bitches!


	26. Exile

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Check out the C U R I O S I T Y Playlist on 8Tracks!  
> http://8tracks.com/thetruemek/c-u-r-i-o-s-i-t-y

###  **-**  14 Exile –

 

 _Camping Planet_ Free Haven  _– Set’s ship – 9 days 4 hours since abduction_

 

Set liked the cigarette afterwards even more than Jenna. Satisfied he leaned back and exhaled the smoke while the human rolled her shoulders, teeth-gnashing at the pain moving them caused, and had the slight apprehension that her hip was dislocated.

    “Just for the record; could you  _not_  break my bones next time and focus on the love-making part?” she groaned and carefully palmed over her left knee, but gladly it didn’t seem to be harmed. Set looked at her puzzled.

    “Love? What’s that got to do with it?” he wanted to know and Jenna pricked up her ears although his snide remark stung. It would quite surprise her if Set really had an idea what love was about.    

    “Well, actually, a lot where I come from. Not for you though, apparently.” She replied askingly and Set rolled his eyes, giving of an annoyed sound and another puff of smoke.

    “‘Love’ is something for lower rank invaders, and they only use it to get a bit of attention from the elite-soldiers and invaders despite their low class. That  _attention_ is mostly to endure their affection and let them shower us with their stupid love, gifts, bootlicking and everything. Invaders in love are annoying… always run around your legs. Whenever that happened to me I would deal them a nice kick and be done with it!” he laughed raspy and Jenna’s expression turned into a frown.

    “Oh.” She just uttered and stood up to look out of the big window as she had initially planned 15 minutes ago. When the wall changed into the see-through material she squealed in surprise.

The whole planet was indeed a campsite, space ships stood crowded side by side as far as the eye could see. Every other bit of free space was occupied by little buildings huddled to both sides of the walkways connecting the single parcels. The boots appeared to be diners and little snackbars, judging by the chewing aliens all around.

And how many there were! Jenna didn’t spot any Irken, but countless Vortians and many more species for which she didn’t have a name yet. Watching the eating masses she felt her shrunken stomach churn and she clutched her tummy.

“Set, can we please get something fresh to eat? I’m dying here!” she whined and the Irken stubbed out his cigarette with a chuckle, getting up himself.

    “Alright, I’m hungry too. But we will need disguises so we don’t attract any unwanted attention.” He added and Jenna blinked surprised with her one eye.

    “Are you kidding? We’re going to dress up? Can I be a Space Pirate?” she wanted to jump around on the spot excited but her knee made her regret it at the first try. She grimaced and Set cocked a brow.

    “So they arrest us on sight? Are you out of your mind?” he snapped and crossed his arms. Jenna stuck out her tongue and put on some clothes to follow him down into the hangar where SIR was currently car-washing the Voot cruiser.

The Irk scrutinized her as he opened one of the metal cabinets, taking out some sort of bracelet to put it on his wrist.

“We have to be careful… your new suit still needs some time to get finished… but you can already have your new translator.” Set started and handed her the delicate headset. He had constructed it the way that it was even automatically connecting to her eyepatch, making it easy to wear without having to fasten it awkwardly.

Then she curiously watched how Set activated another machine she hadn’t seen in action until now. A screen lit up and he scrolled through several profiles of aliens as she recognized watching the changing silhouettes. When he had found something to his liking his Pak connected to the machine and started humming loudly, downloading the data. Then he turned on the bracelet he had put on and not a second later Jenna stared at a tall, brightly fawn alien with red-brown stripes covering his skin like those of a zebra. He had four eyes with star-shaped pupils, a long, thin neck and his skin seemed to shimmer faintly.

Set put on his armor and even that had changed its color and design, and she noticed the Irken symbol on the chestplate was gone.

    “Oh wow, this looks amazing! What kind of alien are you?” she asked delighted and he shrugged with an uninterested sound looking at his now slender hands with four digits.

    “An Ilenian*. It fits my size and they’re very common so I won’t stick out too much.”

Tingling with excitement she forgot about her worries from last night and also ignored his sour mood.

    “What can I be?” she asked and already imagined walking among all these aliens. She would have loved to go without a disguise but she figured the Tallest would probably hunt for a human and being the only one of her kind out here it was likely that she’d draw attention to her.

The disguised Irken handed her one of the bracelets and synced it after she’d wrapped it around her wrist. He put on a musing frown.

    “Since you don’t have a Pak to uphold the hologram you have to pay attention to this light here. When it starts blinking it means the bracelet is almost out of energy and needs to be charged. As long as I’m with you my Pak can take care of that but we should better not be seen when doing it. Alright, since you’re not that tall you might go for a Vort.” He stated and already searched the data base.

Jenna pouted.

    “Aren’t there any other aliens my size? I’ve already seen Vortians.” She complained but Set only grinned at her.

    “You’re tall enough to be one of the rat-people of Blorch but they’re actually extinct. No, no, a Vortian is the best choice, also because they’re often seen travelling with Ilenians. So, with this.” He pointed at him. She shrugged and nodded with a disappointed sigh.

    “Alright, fine.”  
  


A few moments later an Ilenian and a female Vortian with green eyes left an Ilenian ship (Set had disguised his vessel before landing) and sauntered towards the countless snackbars. The many other aliens around them didn’t pay them much more attention than everyone else. Although they would have wondered if they’d taken a closer look at the Vortian; she was constantly turning her head, staring at everything and everyone, not wary but full of curiosity and marvel. When a group of Ilenian children half her size ran past her, chasing each other, they would’ve heard a strange laughter way too high and melodic for a real Vortian to ever emit.

Set nudged her and frowned disgruntled. Since they’d departed he seemed to be even grumpier than usually. Jenna rolled her eye but already forgot about it as she bent her neck back to watch a giant alien the size of a house with two heads who slowly stomped through the masses with utmost care. The playing children from just now apparently had made a dare of not getting squished by the massive feet as they ran right under them.

The gentle giant let them have their fun and watched out with some of his many eyes to not actually step on one of them. Jenna chuckled quietly to herself and eyed the neon sign of the snackbar they were heading to.

As they walked through the door she could hardly keep a surprised sound. It almost looked like a diner from Earth! Even though the range of smells was incredibly strange yet not straight bad. She took a look around, checked her bracelet and gently nudged Set.

    “You go get us some food - I have no idea what all that stuff’s supposed to be anyway. For me the usual: proteins, fat, you know me. I get us a seat.”

He blinked surprised and could only nod as she already went to look for a free table. The other aliens didn’t take much notice of the small Vortian and so she could take her time watching them herself from a little corner booth while she waited for her food. Some of the dishes at the other tables made her actually retch just from looking at them. She was desperately hoping that Set wouldn’t bring her anything alive just to mess with her.

As Jenna was gazing around a Vortian suddenly stepped right in front of her, blocking her view on a massive Blob-thing stuffing himself with food. Confused she looked up and into a wide grin with lots of sharp teeth. The Vortian cleared his throat.

    “Hey… err…  all by yourself? The name’s Drixx. Never seen ya around here… know what’s on the menu? Me-n-u.”

Jenna was so baffled that she couldn’t reply anything to that and her jaw slagged. Was that guy actually  _flirting_  with her? His gaze got a bit insecure but then he nodded. “Ah, got it, you’re more the quiet type. I like that.” His grin got even wider. Jenna wasn't sure if she should laugh or cry. Drixx was incredibly bad at this.

Before she could come up with something clever in return the Vortian was lifted up from the ground by the collar of his uniform. The Ilenian standing behind him bared his teeth; what wasn’t exactly intimidating for their species has really flat teeth, and he slowly put down the two dinner trays.

    “First: She’s  _not_ alone. Second: If I see you around her ever again, I’m going to destroy you.  _Any questions_?” he hissed and Drixx quickly raised his hands.

    “Hey, man, no stress we- we were just talking, okay? She’s not my type, anyway!” he sputtered frantically and Jenna realized that around them all the aliens were watching the drama. That wasn’t a good first day incognito at all! She jumped up and grabbed Set’s arm.

    “It’s okay, he just tried to be nice!  _Please_  put him down!” she interrupted him as he was about to inhale for a tirade. He shot her a furious glare and slowly put the squirming Vortian down on his thin feet, but not without gnashing his teeth. “I’m so sorry, it’s just… he’s very concerned about my safety, it’s his  _job_.” She apologized to him and Drixx waved her off with a scared side look towards Set.

    “It’s okay. I’ve never met such an explosive Ilenian… but I guess that makes him a really good bodyguard.” With this he got lost and Jenna sighed relieved. When the other guests turned away one by one and they had sat down she gave Set a kick under the table. He widened his eyes in utter surprise.

    “Keep it together! They may expect such a behavior from an Irken, but as far as I took it Ilenians aren’t that hot-headed and aggressive. If we don’t want to draw any attention to us we need to play it cool. Which means for you to stop acting like a jealous little brat!” she hissed and felt really satisfied that he could just stare at her angrily as she took her food and unwrapped it.

When she lowered her gaze she froze, her left eye snapped open.

“Uhm… what… exactly is that? Or… what  _was_  it?” she asked faintly and stared at the green goop that had something like space-sausages sticking out of it.  When she lifted her gaze from it Set grinned viciously. Despite the disguise she could clearly see the Irken before her eyes.

    “ _Your_  part of ‘playing it cool’ is to eat the stuff Vortians enjoy. Don’t worry; that shouldn’t be poisonous to you and besides that it has everything you wanted.” He purred and bit with relish into something that looked like an actual donut. And even smelled like one. Longingly she eyed his food and then the mush on her plate. But she wouldn’t let him have this victory!

Thus she picked up the strange fork he had brought along and nibbled at a teeny tiny bit of the green slag. She found relieved that it didn’t taste even half as bad as expected and the sausages were actually really good. Moreover her stomach would appreciate it.

While they ate Jenna suddenly remembered something.

    “Hey, can I ask you something? Without you freaking out?” she said quietly and he nodded slowly. Jenna shifted around on her seat, tucking one foot under her leg to sit more comfortably before going on. “So, Jak, the Vortian from the prison told me that the Tallest had sent someone to Earth before you, but he disappeared. Do you know anything about that?” she asked and Set nodded again after he’d mused over it for a bit.

    “I wasn’t at the Great Assigning that day… I already had my next planet assigned to me beforehand because I was still finishing off my special Elite-Soldier training in addition to my status as an invader. But I heard about it when the other invaders where chit-chatting over the long range comm. The invader sent to Earth first was a defect, a downright bane to the Empire. He almost destroyed our home planet at the first wave of invasion, and for this he got his status removed and banned to some snacking-planet as a service drone. But somehow he managed to escape and show up again for the Great Assigning of the second Operation. So the Tallest” Set seemed to flinch at the thought of his leaders, “they sent him off into a far corner of the galaxy to get rid of him. But he actually found a planet, Earth, and survived. But then he suddenly disappeared and was never heard of again. The Earth was free for conquest again and I was sent to seize it.” He shrugged but Jenna was still pondering about it.

If that Irk had gear similar to Set’s he might actually still  _be_  on Earth, only disguised. But Earth was too far away to even think about trying to contact him.

She ate everything, down to the last crumb and sank back with a sigh. Set looked at her surprised, shoving the last of his donuts into his mouth.

“Never thought something that small could eat so much… aren’t you like, exploding?” he asked slightly nervous when she nodded with a serious expression.

    “Yep, if I don’t get a cigarette this instant it’ll tear me to pieces!” she groaned, holding her belly. Set jumped to his feet but Jenna just laughed at him. “I’m kidding! But I’d really like one.”

He looked around.

    “I’m not sure if we should…” Jenna waved him off and stood up.

    “Let’s get outside, find a quiet place, and we won’t get in trouble.” she suggested and grabbed the trays. From looking around earlier she had soon found out where to put the used trays. Set just blinked again but followed her.

They found a small back alley that was void of any other aliens. Still Jenna looked around warily before handing Set her cigarette to light it. She sighed and chuckled as the Irken growled just as blissfully. “See? Much better.”

Once they were done Set took a look at the bracelet on her wrist.

    “We’re going to need a few things, mostly spare parts and resources for the ship, and food as well. I’m not sure how long we’ll be able to stay here.” He stated and she grinned.

    “You’re gonna take me on a shopping spree? Nice. But why can’t we stay? Do you think they’re looking for us here?”   
He nodded.

    “Plus I don’t really have any real permission to camp here for a longer time.” He added and Jenna’s jaw dropped suddenly.

    “Hold on! You’re telling me that we’re  _illegal aliens_  on this planet? That we’re parking here without a pay and display ticket and can get towed away?!” she groaned shocked. “Set, you’re parking a space ship the size of a small cruise liner in the middle of the planet and simply hope no one will look for the  _car park ticket_? Seriously?” Panic rose in her. If they’d lose the ship they were practically stranded on this planet and easy game for the Tallest to track down.

Set furrowed his brows, his antennae angrily cutting through the air.

    “Well, what was I supposed to do? You wanted something to eat, well, you  _got_  it! It takes almost a stellar cycle to get a permission because of all these stupid fugitives! But we’ll need supplies if we want to keep being fugitives ourselves!” he kicked down a trash container, “Shit! This whole thing is such a fucked-up mess!” he hissed and Jenna looked around startled. Set was currently lividly cursing in human tongue and some of the few aliens were already looking towards them. She grabbed his arm.

    “I know, I know, I’m sorry! Please calm down, we- we’ll figure something out!” she took a deep breath, pinching the bridge of her nose. “Look, just give me a list of the things you need and which I can actually get, and we’ll meet back at the ship. This way we’re quicker.” she said under her breath and Set looked at her in doubt. But then his eyes narrowed, the old distrust was back. She sighed.

“I swear, I’m not going to try and run away. Especially not right now! You saved my life, remember? Twice, actually. And did Samwise Gamgee leave Frodo at the foot of Mount Doom in Mordor when everything seemed hopeless?” At his confused face she threw her hands in the air. “Of course not! Alright: I need a readable list of the items you want me to get and something to pay with.”

Set growled, he didn’t like that idea at all, but swiftly reached for his Pak to get a small handheld out of it. He quickly wrote something on it and handed it over to her. Jenna looked over the list that was longer than she had expected. She had no clue what any of this was supposed to mean but when she tapped on the words it showed some blueprints. Set nudged her and she took a small silvery card.

    “You pay with this. Just give it to the retailer. It’s bound to my biosignature, but since you have the slave brand you’re practically wearing a part of my biosignature. It won’t work with someone else. Just don’t lose it. I’m going to repark the ship in the meantime.” he whispered back and wanted to head off already.

    “Wait! How am I supposed to find you?” she called out nervously and he pointed at the tablet.

    “I’m going to send you a message on this. Hurry!” With this he wanted to walk away but stopped again, turning around to kiss her. Jenna returned the kiss a bit surprised and went on her way.

 

* * *

  
  
  
* Ilenians: Inhabitants of Il, but after its conquest through Irken invader Hub the survivors settled on Il2, a far of planet at the outer rim of the galaxy. Many of them refused to live on the new planet and joined the Resisty.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Double update weeee~ :D I'm going to add a picture of an Ilenian asap :*


	27. Exile - Pt. 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Check out the C U R I O S I T Y Playlist on 8Tracks!  
> http://8tracks.com/thetruemek/c-u-r-i-o-s-i-t-y

###  **-**  14 Exile –

#### Part 2

  
Set had also written the name of the shop on the tablet and she found it without trouble. The shop was looking empty from the outside and she took deep breaths before entering, trying to look as self-confident as possible. The alien behind the counter was also a Vortian and scrutinized her.

    “Hi, I need spare parts for my partner’s ship.” She said friendly and the Vort flinched startled. Jenna almost grabbed her throat; her voice sounded nothing like that of a Vortian! But the shopkeeper caught himself again, slowly reaching out for the tablet. At first she didn’t want to give it to him, afraid the strange symbols could ultimately put him off, but when he waved his hand impatiently she handed him the tablet, holding her breath.

The Vortian frowned.

    “What do you need a double-clocked power core for, if I may ask? Far as I now those are solely used in SIR units…” he looked up with narrowed eyes and Jenna’s brain turned into emergency-mode. She was already pumped with adrenaline and the disguise did its own part to spark her imagination. She smiled and conspiratorially leaned on the counter, taking a quick look over her shoulder.

    “Well, my partner and I managed to steal a SIR unit from its Irken master… we were able to put it on ice before it could self-destruct. Now we plan on re-programming it so that it attacks Irken!” she whispered and grinned. The Vortian’s eyes widened and he looked down on the tablet in thoughts.

    “You know… we actually don’t have anything on sale right now but I’m sure you can get a discount on these things. Just a sec, my assistant will get all you need from our stock.” He replied and smiled grimly. Jenna returned that smile and waited tensed.

    “So… mind if I ask how exactly you managed to do that? Nobody was ever able to do anything like that…” he asked curiously. She gulped and cursed herself. Why hadn’t she thought of anything simpler? Or just play dumb? But that gave her another idea.

    “Oh, my partner’s an inventor. He’s managed to find a frequency that drives the SIR units insane as if they were defect. Sadly the effect doesn’t last for long so you have to be swift in separating them from their master. I tricked it, making it chase me through the ship, and cut his head off. Doesn’t hurt them if you don’t break the processor.”

The Vortian was listening enthralled and nodded interested.

    “And what particular frequency is that?”

 _Smartass, huh?_  She thought and shrugged, shaking her head.

    “Sorry, I’m no darn scientist, no idea what all that rambling is all about. He’s the brain, I’m the one who punches things. And even if I knew, I wouldn’t be allowed to tell you.” She huffed. The merchant tilted his head.

    “Hmm, too bad.” But in this moment a tall alien came from the back of the shop, carrying a box full of metal things. The shopkeeper showed her every item and she compared them with the ones on her list. Since she seemed to have everything Set had sent her for she gave him the silvery card, her heart pounding again.

But all went smoothly; he gave her the card back together with the box. Jenna tugged it under her arm.

    “Thank you, have a good day.” she said taking her leave The shopkeeper nodded at her. And then he emitted four Vortian sounds. She froze on the spot, slowly turning around. She recognized the sounds as the secret code of the rebels that Jak had taught her! With a serious expression she nodded and returned the four sounds before leaving the shop and going on her way.

When she turned around a corner she had to sink against a wall and take a breather. That had been a close one, too close actually! Her handheld gave a ping and she read the message from Set. He had parked the ship a few docks farther. Now she only had to ask for directions.

Jenna approached an Ilenian leaning against a lantern and he pointed down the alley. She felt better already; seeing the aliens for the first time had been exciting but actually interacting with them felt like a dream and now she was talking to them as if they were humans in a city. Too be honest, she actually liked this a lot more than Earth!

Coming to a crossroad she asked a big, snail-like creature next. It told her how to get to the dock and even seemed to smile at her. If you left out the strings of slime constantly pouring out its mouth it looked quite cute.

She arrived at another crossway and tried to recollect what the snail had said; it hadn’t sounded that far away anymore.

    “Dangit, Set! Couldn’t you just send me a map or something? You should be that advanced, right?” she growled and didn’t notice how the bracelet started to blink for the box was in front of it. Additionally her collar had stopped blinking by now why she didn’t notice the blinking when she put the box on the other side.

Around her the aliens were minding their everyday business and didn’t pay attention to the Vortian with a box full of spare parts. Jenna was about to ask a green alien with four arms for directions when it recoiled from her startled, staring at her. Confused she took a step back herself and stumbled against an Ilenian who turned around but stepped away upon seeing her, downright scared. Now she started to realize that something was wrong and she looked down her body, until she saw human feet.

“Shit…” the human gasped and looked around nervously, clutching the box. All of the aliens around her moved back, away from the strange alien that had appeared out of nowhere. Some of them where hissing more or less agitated and she looked in many terrified pairs of eyes.

Slowly she walked backwards and tried to look as harmless as possible, but a woman cried out when Jenna accidentally came too close to her child, and this broke the silence. The Ilenian she had bumped into wanted to go for her but he dodged quickly, running into a Vortian and got pushed back into the circle that had formed around her.

“Hey! Stop it!” she screamed frightened and ducked when somebody from the crowd actually threw something after her. “Damn it, I haven’t even  _done_ anything to you yet!” she called, her voice got shrill and another Vortian pointed at her.

    “Ey, she threatens us, you hear that?! Get her!” as the mob started to move Jenna turned heel and ran, punching for everyone who tried to grab her. Surprised and even pained calls sounded although she didn’t actually hit anyone. Then she suddenly spotted an opening and she sprinted for it thoughtlessly. The raging crowd behind her took up pursuit and attracted more aliens with their clamor.

Panicking Jenna ran through multiple back alleys trying to shake them but the aliens were incredibly persistent. She took another turn, panting, and the road in front of her was gone all of a sudden. The ground dropped so deeply that she could barely make out the ground.

With a terrified scream she threw herself back, pressing to the wall of a house that stood right at the abyss and her head collided painfully with it but she didn’t notice it. Her feet jutted over the ledge and she felt the wind pulling on her. She heard the mad mob closing in and knew she could go neither back nor forward. So she just stayed pressed to the wall and stared into the bottomless pit.

The crowd got louder, louder, the sound of running feet and stalks came closer… and went away again.

She listened confused. But it stayed quiet. Only now Jenna realized she had held her breath and exhaled hardly. Panting she sucked in the oxygen trying to calm her racing heart that was about to burst out her chest. She saw black dots dancing before her eyes and her knee suddenly ached so badly that she had to immediately relieve it, sinking against the wall hissing. She clutched the box in her arms, searching for the tablet. It was gone. She must’ve dropped it wrestling the aliens.

“Shit, Set… why couldn’t you just pick me up with the Voot-Cruiser? You stupid idiot!”

She actually wasn’t blaming him but herself. If she had watched the bracelet this wouldn’t have happened!

She gasped again as her knee throbbed painfully and didn’t try to put any weight on her leg again; something was extremely wrong with her splint. Now she was almost sure that Set would think she had ran away. On one hand it could mean that he was now mad with rage and about to come looking for her, on the other hand it could also mean that he had written her off and was already miles away.

In any case: without a means to contact him she was stuck here, and she couldn’t turn to any of the aliens for help anymore without getting lynched. E.T. must’ve had felt this way…        

    “There you are!”

Jenna screamed and tried to free herself from the Vortian’s grasp. They had found her! Her knee gave way as she put weight on it and he pulled her out of her hidey hole without any trouble.

    “No, please! I’m a human and completely harmless; I just want to go back to my ship and then I’ll be gone, I swear!” she stopped struggling and looked up into her opponent’s face. Baffled she went quiet. It was the shopkeeper from whom she had bought the spare parts she was still clinging to.

“Wait… how did you…”

The Vortian grinned.

    “Well, I knew something was fishy about you so I followed you. But I never would’ve thought that there’d be such a strange alien behind that hologram! A human, hm? Only saw one in my life and that one was traveling with two Plookesians and looked completely different from you.”

He helped her up and she caved in again why he hunkered down to take a look at her hydraulic splint. “Hm… one of the strings dislocated… one sec, that won’t take long.”

Jenna still stood there frozen while the Vortian tinkered with the framework around her knee.

    “W- why are you helping me? And… why aren’t you afraid of me like the others?” she asked with faint, shaking voice. He stood up again, sighing.

    “First: You look like you’ve had some hard times lately,” he pointed at his eye and she touched her patch. “Second: you know the secret password of the resistance movement which is only passed to those who are deemed trustworthy. And every friend of the resistance is a friend of mine, may he or she look just as strange as you do. Whatever you’re up to, I’m going to help you out.” He grinned and extended a hand. “I’m Trook.”

She returned the smile and shook his hand, glad that the sleeve of her oversized jacket hid the slave brand on her wrist.

    “Jenna, from Earth.” She replied, carefully burdening her left leg. To her surprise the pain was gone and only a dull throbbing was left.

    “Gotta get back to your ship, huh?”

She nodded and told him the address Set had sent her.

He frowned with a little smile. “Oh, well that was the complete wrong direction then. Follow me, I know a shortcut.”

She followed the Vortian shopkeeper through abandoned alleys and quiet side roads until they suddenly stood in front of a wide open space. Only a few space ships were occupying the lot. She spotted Set’s ship in a corner; she had almost forgotten that he had disguised it as well and pointed at it.

    “There, this one.”

Trook nodded.

    “We have a clear path. Come on.” Jenna wanted to stop him but the Vortian already rushed off. She followed him as quickly as she could but the incident from earlier made her take careful steps to not strain the splint any more.  As they approached the ship she shot nervous glances towards the bridge. She could almost sense Set’s angry glares piercing her skull from above and hugged the box with spare parts closer to her chest. She turned to the merchant.

    “Thank you for everything, Trook, but you have to go. My… partner is insanely paranoid. That’s why he makes me get all the stuff he needs.” She laughed timid and felt like trash that she was  _still_ lying to him, the only alien besides Ria and Jak who had been friendly towards her without asking something in return. The Vortian looked up to the bridge.

    “I understand… we all have our own little idiosyncrasies in the resistance…” he grabbed her hand and squeezed it gently. “A pleasure meeting you, Jenna from Earth. Take care!”

She nodded with a genuine smile she couldn’t keep.

    “Thank you so much… for your kindness and your help.” The hatch to the storage compound opened and lowered the elevator. “And of course for the discount! Take care!” she called after the Vortian who was already leaving but stopped again to wave at her. She sighed and stepped on the lift, bracing for the worst but not slightly ready for it.

When she arrived in the dark storage room, lifting her head, she met the stare of two crimson eyes, like daggers. Jenna sighed again and her shoulders slumped down. Set, now without his disguise and a whole lot more intimidating, crossed his arms, still not saying anything.

She stayed quiet as well, defiant.

But then everything burst out of her and she clutched the box to her chest like a shield.

    “Set, I’m  _sorry_! It- everything went so good, the- the shopkeeper even gave me a discount on the double-clocked power core for SIR! But, when I was outside, asking for directions my disguise suddenly failed! The- you can’t imagine how they all freaked out seeing me like this! I almost got lynched out there! Then the shopkeeper found me and helped me get to the ship without getting massacred. I had convinced him that we’re with the resistance and he helped me out without even asking about any details. Look, I am  _sorry_ , okay?” breathless she looked up to him. Set didn’t move, only bared his teeth.

As she already feared he might just throw her out the hatch multiple arms, metal ones and two real ones, suddenly embraced her, pulling her to his body. The box with the metal parts fell to he floor with a loud clang.

    “Can  _you_  even imagine what I’ve gone through picturing what might have happened to you?! I couldn’t  _locate_ you anymore! I thought the collar detonated or they had caught you! And then you show up with this Vortian, I wanted to free you with force!” he shouted angry but also relieved. Then he pushed her away at arms-length eyeing her from head to toes. “Are you hurt?”

Jenna shook her head, shedding a single tear.

    “No, I- I’m fine, Set. My knee just took some damage from the running.”

Set exhaled sharply, placing a kiss on her hair before lifting his antennae with a scowl.

    “What is wrong with the collar?!” He examined it and Jenna looked away.

    “Yeah, see, I wanted to tell you earlier, but kinda forgot about it… when I was pumped on Pakrit I did something to it so that it couldn’t explode anymore. Don’t ask me how, I have no idea! I did it because I knew your leaders were planning to kill me with it.”

Set recalled the moment from her memories. He furrowed his brows in confusion and wanted to say something but Jenna took his face in her hands and looked at him sternly. “See? All this time I could have ran away and yet I didn’t! Isn’t that enough prove?” she asked quietly and Set slowly nodded, palming over her back.

    “Alright… I’ll take it off. But first we got to get a move on or they’ll quickly count one and one together.” He placed her back on the ground and disappeared to head to the bridge.  SIR helped Jenna to pick up the scattered metal parts and seemed genuinely happy about that new power-core.

After she was done Set returned to remove the collar around her neck. She rubbed her nape and felt as if a huge weight was lifted from both her body and her mind. This was a great turn-over in Set’s trust towards her and she was very relieved about that.

Jenna went to take a bath. She was sweaty and wanted to examine her injuries. It took her a while to pull off her pants because of the framework but when she managed to get rid of them her knee looked actually better than it had this morning. She had removed the dressing and on the surface it seemed to be healed completely. But it was still red, hot and swollen; she wouldn’t be able to walk without the splint screwed into her leg for quite some time. Her right leg was still covered by a thick dressing which she tore with her teeth and unwrapped it.

Relieved she noticed that it was healing much quicker than the rest of her wounds. The skin under it was baby-pink and soft. She could still see the bright scars the circuits had burned into it though. Some sort of cutout system might be good for her new suit. Exhausted she sank into the bowl-like tub and washed sweat and old skin off her body. Her right eye seemed to be still very dead, at least she hadn’t noticed anything else besides from the patch injecting something into her eye socket from time to time.

But what irritated her most was her distorted depth perception. Trying she aimed for one of the bubbles and her finger missed it by an inch. Jenna frowned. Hopefully the doohickey was actually doing something and SIR hadn’t just bolted it to her head for shits and giggles.

With wet hair she went to the Bridge and found Set staring at the stellar map. A swarm of lights displayed the armada floating around the _Massive_. Alarmed she came closer.

    “Are they onto us?” she asked nervously but Set made the map disappear in the blink of an eye and turned away, and his antennae twitched caught. She wasn’t sure if it was only imagination but to her it looked like she had caught him doing something forbidden, like a boy with his hand in the cookie-jar.

    “No… just wanted to make sure they’re not… following us…” he replied, slightly angered and now she was certain that she had caught him doing something bad.

Jenna’s eye widened as she now walked around the seat to look him in the eyes.

    “Please…  _please_ don’t tell me you wanted to  _contact_  them! Set?”

He avoided her stare and she recoiled in shock. “I don’t believe this…" she muttered, "you  _really_  want to call them. Have you forgotten that they wanted to kill me- wanted to kill  _you_!? Do you actually think that has changed in any way?” she brushed through her hair and drips splashed to the floor, slowly vaporizing.  “ _Shit_ , especially after everything you did to their guards they’re going to slay you with a wide grin should you set one foot on their ship! Set, please: don’t be so  _dumb_!” she called desperately and leaned back against the console behind her so she could glare at him.

Set bared his teeth.

    “And what if I just explain everything to them? If I tell them that you just followed your primitive human instincts when you threw yourself between them and the drone? That it wasn’t your fault but that defect’s alone? They… they will understand…” he went silent when Jenna froze, slowly standing upright again and looked at him so very coldly that he felt an icy shiver running down his antennae to his Pak.

    “Giving his life for the weak and oppressed is  _primitive_? Ria was just a crazed drone because she overcame the boundaries of your restricted conscience? I am just some wild animal to you?” she bounced off the console and walked towards him, without limping, without stumbling. Jenna jammed her hands on the armrests of his seat, bringing her face close to his. “I’m actually starting to regret that I didn’t take my chance, you know?”

She straightened herself again shaking her head. “But you haven’t called them yet. Please reconsider it, okay? For me? And if that doesn’t mean anything to you then please, do it for your  _own_  sake.”

With stiff steps she left the Bridge and the frozen Irken behind. Set stayed in his seat until the door slid shut with a whirring. Then he clenched his fists and stared irately at the console with the comm.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Of course it wouldn't stay peaceful for too long... but you're all probably used to it by now ;-;


	28. Decision

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Check out the C U R I O S I T Y Playlist on 8Tracks! http://8tracks.com/thetruemek/c-u-r-i-o-s-i-t-y

### \- 15 Decision -    
 

 _Set’s ship – Laboratory – 2 parsec from_ Free Haven 

 

Jenna sat in the lab and was staring at the microbots. Hatefully she tapped against the tank’s glass every few seconds, looking through the microscope with a grim smile, and watched satisfied how the cell-sized pests trembled with every blow.

She was boiling with rage.

How could Set be this stupid? How could he just ignore the fact that his Tallest wanted to murder him in cold blood? Not only had they lied to him, no, they had sent in whole execution-teams and hadn’t shown any sign of willingness to  _talk_  it over!

At that thought she dealt the tank a fierce push and stood up abruptly. Restlessly she snuck out of the lab and towards the first-aid-room. Maybe she could smuggle out some scalpels or a flask of acid.

But without SIR she had no idea what the signs on the containers meant and Set kept the scalpels sealed inside his Pak. Frustrated she kicked against a cabinet and one of the bottles fell down.

Rash she made a grasp for it and fell to the floor herself, the container safe in her hands.

Groaning she cursed the Tallest in every human language she knew, until her look traveled under one of the transfusion machines. She spotted a weird black marble that seemed awkwardly out of place and sparked a memory. Jenna furrowed her brows and took it.

When she rolled the hazelnut-sized sphere between her fingers she suddenly remembered the big hopper, the leader of the Prerk! He had given her this thing while Set was getting the synthetic blood. She must’ve had dropped it when she was tending towards the severely injured alien. She recalled that this pill was supposed to knock out an Irken like Set for a whole day.

Lost in thoughts she kneaded her lip.

Set would immediately destroy this thing if he were to ever know about is, SIR as well.

Jenna couldn’t help but picture different scenarios.

If Set did  _not_  call the Tallest and realize that they were just out to kill him no matter what he said, she would hide the pill among her stuff or even somewhere in the ship, just in case. But should he indeed contact them she would have to make a decision. Either she somehow administered the drug to him and tried to escape on her own, or…

At this point she heard steps outside the room and quickly put the pill into her pants’ pockets, not a second before the door slid open and Set came in. Flabbergasted he looked down, stopping in the doorway.

    “What are you doing on the floor?”

Jenna looked around, realizing she was indeed still lying on her back and bobbed up.

    “I knocked a flask down and decided to share its fate.”

Then they said nothing.

She put the bottle back into the shelf and stayed with her back towards Set, her fingertips swiped up invisible dust.

    “Did you want to kill yourself?” he asked into the tense silence and she flinched, honestly surprised he would assume something like that and turned around.

    “What?! No, god no! I died once and somehow it just isn’t my thing.” She laughed humorlessly and looked at him. Set’s antennae whipped unintended as the memory, both their memories, surfaced in him. He crossed his arms and shrugged with an indifferent expression, as though it wouldn't have surprised him if she had attempted suicide. Jenna frowned.

“What do you want?” her voice sounded sharper than she had meant it to and she immediately flinched guilt-ridden. The Irken shot her an angry glare.

    “Well, maybe I was worried about you?” he snapped back and she cocked a brow. So he wanted to play  _this_  game then? Well she had to happen a few more aces up her sleeve.

    “ _Really now_ , Set? You were worrying about  _me_? Not, let’s say, about how I could do something  _primitive_  that might be bad for you or your ship? Are you sure?” she crossed her arms as well and watched pleased how Set’s mouth opened but closed again. “Thought so; you’re not even able to worry about others, right? In reality you’re just concerned about your own good and just keep telling yourself it is the worry for someone else’s sake.”

Set snarled and took a menacing step towards her, furiously furrowing his brows while at the same time clenching his fists to rein himself in.

    “Ooh, you don’t wanna go there…” he warned her but Jenna wanted exactly to go there, even a step further. Out of hope to somehow change anything about him in a desperate attempt or maybe just because she  _was_  actually suicidal, she couldn’t tell.

    “In reality you’re just jealous of every other being that can feel the way I do because you’re afraid I might escape your cage for them, that’s why you attacked Drixx at the diner, and Daniel back on Earth! But I wouldn’t leave you just because you can’t understand emotions that every normal, self-conscious creature has, because that isn’t your fault; no, what really drives me up the wall is the fact that, after all that has happened the last couple of days, you’re still obeying these monsters like a fucking dog!”

Set threw his hands in the air.

    “Oh, I’m sorry; I didn’t know that this was  _my_  fault all of a sudden! Who of us ran away and decided to attack one of the most powerful Irken in the whole universe, huh?!” he shot back spiteful. Jenna felt hot, outraged tears burning in her eye and she now clenched her fists to compose herself as well.

    “You’re  _defending_  them? Doesn’t it disgust you what they tried to do to me? Do you think it was fair what they pulled off? O- or civilized? I know such an amount of mindless slaughter only from the lowest species on my planet!”

Set snorted scornfully and crossed his arms again with a derogative gesture.

    “From your own species or what?”

Jenna screamed, an ear-splitting, shrill sound in the small room, and grabbed the bottle she had only just placed back on the shelf. Set could barely dodge as it already exploded at the doorframe above his head, gushing the Irken in medical lye.

    “ _You’re such a goddamn asshole, Set_! I don’t know  _why_ I keep up with your constant harassing, your madness and your fucking violence! I  _don’t know_  why I tried to get used to the fact that I’m stuck under your domination for the rest of my life! You know what: Bite me!” she shoved him out of the way and stormed down the hallway.

Set was left numbed and a bit stupefied. Bewildered he touched his throbbing shoulder she had pushed against a wall. Her sudden strength had taken him off-guard.

But he was quick to shake his confusion and followed her, rage flaring in him as he wiped the ley from his antennae.

    “Come back here this instant, you bitch! Don’t think you can talk to me like that and get away with it!” he found the elevator’s door closed and roared in anger. “Oh, we’re playing tag now? Alright, the one chasing may rip a leg off the one hiding!” The elevator finally came back and Set jumped inside. There weren’t many places she could’ve gotten to in time but he had the feeling she would try her silly little trick with the door to the command bridge again. He ejected his spider legs to be quicker than she could barricade the door.

Except they were open. Confounded he stopped and looked around. Maybe she was hiding between the bridge’s machinery? But again, negative. The Irken hissed and scratched the walls with his spider legs as he went to search the bedroom.

Yet the human stayed gone; as if the ground had swallowed her up. Now Set grew nervous and his anger left him gradually the longer he searched.

After he hadn’t found her in the bathroom or the hangar he actually stopped and thought about other spots she could be hiding. Then he remembered and almost facepalmed.

The door to the examination room wasn’t locked nor blocked off and it was dark behind it, only the blue lights danced over the ceiling. Jenna sat beside the window where he had first heard her singing. Now she was smoking, her iPod lying next to the pack of cigarettes, quietly playing the music he so enjoyed himself.

Set stopped, tried to bring back the anger he had felt but all he managed to accomplish was a tired sigh.

Slowly he approached her and sank down to the ground on the opposite side before the window. They listened to the music playing for a while until the next song started and Jenna wiped a tear from her cheek. His antennae pressed flatly against his head and he scratched his nape.

    “I… err… sorry… for calling you a bitch… and stuff.” He muttered so low-voiced that he could hardly even understand himself.

Jenna laughed and sniffed.

    “I’m sorry for the bottle… and stuff.” She added and drew her legs to her chest to put her cheek on her knees. She exhaled slowly closing her eye. “I would’ve loved to stay on this camping planet for a little longer… the people were really nice as long as they thought that I was one of them… it was like Earth… no, better actually. We should visit more planets like this one. Maybe we find one where Irken and humans don’t cause a mass panic.” She said absently while watching the passing stars.

Set stayed quiet.

“I am  _so_  afraid, Set. The thought alone of going back  _there_  and knowing that there’s only death waiting for us… I’d rather jump out the air lock; but that would mean leaving you behind and I… I just can’t do that, after all it  _was_  my fault that you got dragged into this mess. I’m… just hoping you’ll do the right thing, even though I don’t know what you would deem to be the right thing or the wrong. I once thought I knew.” She gave a short laugh again and finally looked at him, her green eye reddened from crying but still as vibrant as ever. He was actually surprised it hadn’t grown dim by now; normally this effect would occur to prisoners that had gone through a lot of pain.

“How long do we know each other by now? One week? Two? I’ve completely lost any sense of time.”

Set smiled lightly. He was still watching her silently.

    “I know a spiral nebula not far from here. We can stay there for a while; we got enough food and supplies.” He finally slated and she raised her head in surprise. “But we can’t run like this forever.” Set added, shaking his head.

Jenna took a deep breath and leaned forward.

    “What about the resistance? The rebels?” she asked with her heart palpitating and his gaze clouded immediately, a scowl creeping up to his face that soon turned into a furious grimace.

    “Deserting is one thing but don’t believe that I’m going to join the  _enemy_  to top it all! I’d rather die than affiliate with these pathetic terrorists! And that’s final, don’t you ever bring this up again!” with this he jumped to his feet and stomped out of the room.

Jenna reached into her pocket, carefully stroking the pill’s smooth surface. It calmed her more than the cigarettes did.

 

* * *

 

An awkward silence had spread over the ship after their fight and Set’s outburst about the rebels. And Jenna could’ve stretched it into lasting some days without any trouble, but the invader got bored after a few hours already and smelled her out in the hangar where she was inspecting her new, finished suit. When he nestled against her, reaching around her waist with a chirr she just rolled her eye and let him carry her to the bedroom without protest.

But even after they were done she stayed awake, brooding, while he was sleeping next to her both exhausted and satisfied. She was sure he would eventually contact the Tallest; he didn’t even have to  _want_  it. Jenna had the misgiving that his Pak would force him to do it should he fail to brief them about his location for a longer time-span. It would explain his recent petulance.

And she couldn’t let that happen.   

She was just playing with the thought of  _distracting_  Set as she had tried to before, when he was developing the brain-bugs, when suddenly a green shimmering cloud appeared in front of the ship. Not a minute later the space ship was engulfed by the glowing gases of the spiral nebula and it slowly floated deeper into it.

Stunned from the sheer beauty Jenna slid off the bed and approached the window until she almost squashed her nose on it. The nebula seemed to spread endlessly and now there was a blue tone mixing into the green. The ship’s energy field was swirling the molecules up behind them. Star-struck she watched the display of colors. In a million miles distance she could make out bright shining stars, young and newborn that sucked the nebula into blinding spirals through their mass.

It was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen in her life and she forgot her sorrow for a moment. Jenna found herself wondering if there were creatures out there who could survive in the cold void and traversed space just to find these fields of glowing gas and float through them like rays over a coral reef. She for one would die to do it.

She was reminded that these nebulas were formed from burned out stars, exploded in a super nova, seeding the elements they had created in their death into the depths of the galaxy for far away worlds to catch them and to conserve them. The Earth and its inhabitants were made of stardust, just like Set and every other living creature.

A wave of melancholy washed over her and her smile slowly faded. If she would die out there she would, bit by bit, turn into stardust again. Fall into tiny atoms and maybe join one of these nebulas if she was lucky. In any case it sounded better than taking her final breath in some filthy cell or arena.

All of a sudden a loud beeping sounded from behind her and jolted Jenna from her thoughts. Set sat up quickly and extended a spider leg plus comm.

    “Invader Set… identify… yourself.” He growled half asleep, and a cold shiver ran down her spine and made her tremble as a well-known voice answered him. It was the voice that would haunt her in her nightmares.

    “Invader Set? Almighty Tallest Red speaking;  _finally_! Let’s dispense with the preliminaries, I want to be frank: please return to the armada! The Empire needs your skills and your expertise. I know, I know, you’re probably confused and feel at a loss about the matter concerning your test subject. But I assure you: it was all just a big  _misunderstanding_  on both ends, Set!”

The Irken frowned and Jenna didn’t dare to breathe when he answered his leader.

    “My Tallest… you didn’t tell me the truth. You said she had died, yet I found her in a room on the MedBay, alive, and not connected to the life-support! How do you explain this?”

Was he actually talking back to him!?

She could practically hear Red grin as he now replied.

    “We were absolutely unsure about her organism and how to help her. We didn’t even know if our life-support systems wouldn’t kill her in an instant. Other than you, Set, for you have your whole equipment finely adjusted to her needs. We tried to help her, I swear it on my honor as Tallest, but we were afraid to harm more than to heal… and suddenly she stopped breathing. We let her in there, unable to order a sepulture without you present. We wanted to await your return and give you time to prepare everything. With such an alien, fragile creature… what were we supposed to do?”

Jenna was close to jumping on the bed and pulverizing the blaring thing with her bare hands as he kept talking and talking. Red’s voice was slightly shaking with obviously played regret but Set seemed to buy it since his face relaxed and he nodded.

“Set, we are deeply sorry for everything that happened, the whole chaos and confusion. But when you flew off all of a sudden we were assuming that her death had grieved you all too heavily and you’d lost your mind… is she alive and well?” he asked, apparently very concerned but she distinctly noticed the lurking undertone.

Set nodded before speaking again.

    “Yes… we’re fine.” He looked over to her and flinched, cocking a brow in silent questioning.

Good, so he must’ve had seen  _something_  on her face. But whether it was hatred, disgust, contempt or fear he had noticed she couldn’t tell; she was feeling all of these emotions with such fury that she was trembling from head to toe and her hands clenched into fists as she tried to keep it together.

    “Oh, wonderful! Set, if you come back I’d like to personally apologize to you. And of course to her as well - I assume you still have our coordinates; we won’t stir until you’ve told us your decision. Tallest Red signing off.” With this the comm went off and it grew quiet.

Jenna wanted so badly to say something but she wasn’t sure it wouldn’t just burst out of her in an inarticulate scream or a wordless hissing. That’s why she stayed by the window and tried to calm down, at least so much that she would be able to talk again. Set stared at the communicator.

    “Don’t tell me you believe him.” Her voice sounded hollow, not like her own. The Irken looked at her.

    “You don’t, apparently.” He stated plainly and let the comm disappear in his Pak.

    “ _Really_? How can you tell? From my cramping jaw muscles or my shaking hands?”

Set wanted to riposte something but he never got the chance. Jenna exploded.

“Exactly how stupid are you?! This is a goddamn trap, Set! I can’t believe they’re this shameless, that they dare to trot out such bullshit! I never stopped breathing for a single second before you came, I was alive and nobody fucking tried to help me! They even wanted to get rid of me when I was lying there!” she screamed, wrapping her arms around her chest. The sudden fear of falling apart washed over her. “They’re planning to lure you into their trap and kill you, I just know it! Damnit Set…” worn out she sank to the floor and buried her face in her hands.

Everything had been for nothing… all the fighting, the strength she had put up to drink Ria’s blood, all the pain. And all of that should have been in vain?

For a second Jenna stopped sobbing when a thought hit her and she snapped her eyes open behind her hands.

No, there was still one thing she could do. She knew where her sweatpants were. She knew in which pocket the marble was.

A hand touched her cheek and she almost screamed startled.

    “Hey…”

Set. He sounded calm, almost as though he wanted to comfort her but that was only imagination, pure wishful thinking. In her thoughts she went over the rough plan and made sure she was really going to go through with it before she pulled her hands back and returned his gaze. “I won’t let anything happen to you. I’ll make sure we don’t get separated and that nobody gets too close to you. Okay?”

She gave him a constrained smile and shrugged.

    “Do I really have a choice in this?”

That didn’t seem to make him happy but at least pleased him for the moment. It was time. She couldn’t wait until he would call back the Tallest. “Hey, err, how about we take a nice, relaxed bath before you call him back, hm? I can get us two of those sugar-slush-thingies and you take a nap. I know you’re still tired, don’t look at me like that.” she said cheerily and even managed to chuckle what elated Set’s mood in an instant.

    “Alright… you know where the food is?” he replied and she nodded.

Jenna knew indeed; she had found the giant walk-in fridge on her rampage through the ship a few hours ago. She snatched her sweatpants from the floor and her big white jacket, and took the elevator down.

Hidden from the cameras she crushed the black pill in her jacket’s pocket while she casually walked through the ship. She passed the laboratory on the lower floor and entered the MedBay first to change the dressing around her right leg. When she was done she walked over to the fridge and took two drinks. With her heart pounding she opened the lids to let two straws sink into the liquids. Her right hand opened slightly and the black powder fell in. Swiftly she stirred and watched relieved how it completely vanished under the colorful stuff. Jenna exhaled quietly, she had held her breath again. Now Set only had to chug it all and voíla.

Her hands were slightly shaking when she returned and nudged the snoozing Irken. He had fallen asleep sitting on the bed and she asked herself if her plan would have worked even without the drug.

Set grumbled when he was woken from his slumber and snatched his cup from her with a grunt. She swallowed and slowly sucked on her straw. The invader didn’t seem to notice anything odd about his drink as he emptied it in three, four gulps and looked at her satisfied; his eyes were gleaming a little bit too awake. Panic rose in her and she forgot the drink in her hand as she stared at him with wide eyes. Did it not work? Was the dose to low?

Set tilted his head, narrowing his eyes.

    “You’re acting strange, human…”

All of a sudden he keeled over, face forward onto the mattress as if someone had knocked him out from behind.

Jenna gasped surprised. But she tore her eyes away from the sight he beheld and managed to pull him into a stable side position so he wouldn’t get hurt in his unconsciousness. He was still breathing, what put her at ease; apparently it was not poisonous, even though his Pak had started humming loudly.

Then it was time to pack up. Quickly.

Jenna found her backpack and threw all of her stuff inside, including the pack of cigarettes. She didn’t want to leave her iPod behind, as well as her sketchbook. As she touched the paper a thought struck her. Should she leave a note for Set?

And most likely send him on the right track? No; she had no idea how long it would take the rebels to get to her and furthermore SIR was still running around somewhere. The little screwhead could still foil her plan single handedly. It was best to immediately contact the resistance!

Jenna took her backpack and turned around once more to give the Irk a last checking look-over. Set was snoring faintly. Something you might call human affection overpowered her and she bent over him to place a kiss on his head.

    “I’m sorry big guy…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yep. That's it. Bam. Let's go, gentlemen!
> 
> Thanks for 700 hits ;-; keep it comming guys!


	29. Decision - Pt. 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Check out the C U R I O S I T Y Playlist on 8Tracks!
> 
> http://8tracks.com/thetruemek/c-u-r-i-o-s-i-t-y

### \- 15 Decision -  

#### Part 2

  
She found the hallway of the command-floor deserted and no trace of SIR inside the hangar either.

Nevertheless she kept looking over her shoulder as she took her suit and wrapped the belt around her hip. If SIR wanted to go one on one she was more than prepared. But the robot didn’t show his face.  

The door to the Command Bridge quietly slid back and Jenna approached the console. She had watched Set enough to know how the communications-system was operated. With one hand she brought her suit to live, ejecting the headset, with the other one she pushed the button.

The screen lit up at the touch and a voice boomed at her. For a shock-second Jenna flinched and thought Set had caught her anyhow, but then she realized that it was only the ship’s computer talking to her which sounded exactly like Set. She touched her chest in relief and took a breather, closing her eyes for a second.

    “ _Identification completed; Invader-property recognized._ ” the computer droned and she cleared her throat. How exactly was she supposed to tell it what she wanted?

    “Uhm… Computer: send encrypted… long-ranged message… on all frequencies?” she tried timid and it took some time before the computer responded.

    “ _Please provide encryption code.”_

Jenna grinned and uttered the four Vortian sounds. “ _Message encrypted; please add message._ ”

She almost spat out a laughter at the sound following – almost like that of a mailbox – and had to collect herself, trying to come up with a convincing call for aid.

    “To any member of the resistance against the Irken Empire: I’m held captive on an Irken space ship and I need your help! The invader commanding this ship is put out of action but only for 24 Ti; I need evacuation as soon as possible… a Vortian named Jak gave me the passcode… he sends his regards.” She added after a second of hesitation and took a shaking breath.

The computer confirmed that the message had been recorded and asked her for more attachments to send.

“Oh, send the current coordinates of this ship!” she felt cold sweat on her palms; she had all but forgotten to tell them where she actually was!

The system closed and she sank onto the pilot seat with a huff. The green nebula had turned a turquoise with slight traces of pink. Now she could only wait and hope the rebels weren’t that far away from her position. Things would get quite awkward if Set would suddenly wake up and realize that she had drugged him.

As time went on without any sign of the resistance she started weighing other possibilities. She could steal the Voot-Cruiser and see how far she could get away.

But suddenly the map in front of the console lit up and a pulsing light approached the ship, causing the computer to give a warning bleep. Compared to Set’s ship it was huge, like an aircraft carrier compared to a sailing boat. The foreign space ship stopped a few lengths in front of the Irken one. Jenna leaned in jittery and pushed the button of the comm that was now blinking as well. She was suddenly nervous and felt a bit of fear creeping up on her.

    “This is Captain Tork, first Commander of the resistance fleet. We received a distress signal from this ship! Identify yourself at once or we will open fire.” The harsh voice sounded Vortian and she gave a relieved gasp.

    “Oh my god...” Then she remembered his warning and quickly repeated the four grunting sounds although her voice was near to cracking from tension. “My name is Jenna… I- I am a human. I’m a prisoner on this ship and I want to escape! I was able to put the invader who captured me out of action. Can you dock at the lower hatch? I- I’m not sure how to open it though, and his SIR unit is still around somewhere. Please don’t shoot.” She heard the desperation in her voice and hoped the Vortian Commander would notice it as well.

    “How were you able to do that?” Tork asked suspicious but the rebel ship was moving towards her.

    “I drugged him; put something in his food, but I’m not sure if he’ll stay unconscious for much longer.” She tried to explain and felt her hackles raising, SIR must’ve had noticed by now that something wasn’t right. Where was the little shit?!

Now the Vortian sounded intrigued.

    “A drug? Huh, interesting… to allow us to dock at the lower hatch you’ll need to access it from the bridge. There should be a green, triangular shaped button at the lower end of the console.”

She checked and nodded baffled.

    “Yeah, I see it!” – “Good. Push it and head to the lower hatch. But hurry, this is going to get a bit loud.”

    “Okay…” the human mumbled and touched the green key. The computer acknowledged the lower hatch’s access and she jumped out of the seat, grabbing her backpack. The suit made her faster and instead of waiting for the elevator she dropped into the shaft, landing lithely on the lower floor. Only to get immediately tackled by a red flash made of metal that collided with her chest and pressed every bit of air out her lungs despite the armor.

Jenna yelled and grabbed SIR, who pinned her to the ground in defiance of his lower weight, trying to throw him off. But the robot only hissed furiously and pressed a blade against her neck.

    “Trrraitorrr!” he screeched clearly angry, fixing his red glowing lens on her. She leaned back from the sharp blade and could only glare back at him. Of course this was bound to happen!

    “Let go off me you goddamn screwhead!” she screamed and aimed for his head. SIR dodged, trying to cut her hand off and Jenna used this second to deal him a fierce headbutt that flung him far enough away for her to sit up and get rid of him completely. But he was already on his feet again, now snapping two canons from his head that started glowing red. Jenna froze, raising her hands in an adjuring manner and talked insistently on him:

“SIR… if you shoot me now, Set will get killed by the rebels that are going to burst through this hatch any second now! I’m just the distraction they need to take you out and seize this ship.”

Surprisingly enough SIR kept his fire. So she continued, confident about his concern for his master. “If you let me go, nothing’s going to happen to Set… and I will be gone with the rebels. Alright? Just let me go, SIR. You would like that anyway, wouldn’t you?”

The robot’s cold stare stayed on her for another good moment. Then he lunged forward; Jenna ducked ready to fight but he activated the boosters in his feet, flew over her head and darted away through the elevator shaft. She exhaled hard and ran along to the hatch in the storage room from which an impatient knocking sounded. A lever opened it and for the second time this day Jenna looked right into the muzzle of a charged canon.

Slowly she raised her hands above her head to show she wasn’t armed. The weapon followed a Vortian with red eyes, alertly scanning his surroundings, and a group of various aliens, all of them armed to their teeth. The Vort, first Commander Tork no doubt, looked at her and his eyes widened in surprise.

   “Well, your voice sounded strange on its own, but I never would’ve imagined such a creature behind it. I am Tork, first Commander of the resistance against the Irken Empire.” He looked around again. “I’ve got some questions, a lot to be honest, but those can wait for now. We better get off this boat quickly. You said the SIR unit was still active…” She quickly nodded and followed him down through the hatch. His team brought up the rear, closing the hatch behind them.

After a few dozen meters down the metal ladder she ended up in a cramped room leading into a vast hangar that was only dimly lit compared to Set’s ship. The tunnel that had connected both ships was retracted and a faint rumbling told her that they were getting away.

She stopped in her steps and looked back. Jenna felt strange, as if she had forgotten something, but when she brushed over the strap across her shoulder the backpack was as heavy as it had been the night she had packed it.

The weird feeling didn’t go away, she was confused and if it hadn’t been for Tork she probably would’ve stood there for hours.

    “Come now… I got the feeling there’s a lot we need to talk about.” He said calmly, and it was the unspoken condolence in his voice that pulled her from her thoughts and she kept following him through the ship.

She couldn’t help but look around curiously. The aliens they passed watched her just as interested but not suspicious or aggressive like those on the camping-planet.

The rebel ship was much less elegant than the Irken space ships but it wasn’t nearly as dark and dirty as that of the Prerk. And it was a lot busier. All around aliens were working or simply standing together in little groups talking lively to each other. The architecture reminded her of the other Vortian ships she had seen back on  _Free Haven_ ; everything was straight lined and seemed to fancy a geometric style.

The rest of the group left them one by one while Tork kept leading her through the whole ship until they reached a double door system that opened as he approached. Two Vortian guards in a heavier armored version of the black catsuit the other members of the ship wore saluted the Commander but seemed to ease a bit too early to eye Jenna with unvarnished astonishment.

It was unmistakably that this was the ship’s Command Bridge; the busy ado dominating the atmosphere of the entire ship apparently concentrated in this room, it was almost crowded with aliens who ran around between countless consoles, screens and keyboards. A few Vorts sat in front of a giant monitor typing on one single keyboard and Jenna assumed they were responsible for the ship’s navigation. An Ilenian observed some sort of radar with his four eyes narrowed in concentration and she even spotted one of the snail-like creatures.

Tork sank down in his seat that was positioned at the back wall from where he could keep an eye on everyone. He scrutinized her with a musing grunt and that tore the human from her observations.

    “So… Jenna.” He finally said, slowly pronouncing her name as if he was trying to memorize it correctly. “Where do you come from and how did you get on that ship?” he asked straight forward. After a second of hesitation she let her suit disappear inside her belt, though she kept the headset, and showed him the Irken slave brand on her wrist. His red eyes widened slightly but he remained quiet. Jenna thought that they weren’t even remotely as terrifying as Tallest Red’s eyes… but rather warm, despite the slight frown.

    “I’m from Earth… it’s- a relatively unknown planet. About two weeks ago- I mean, fourteen solar cycles, but I don’t really know if that’s right…” she stopped and closed her eyes. She felt nauseous and light-headed, and tried to focus, it felt as if the loss of fear had created a vacuum in her body. “I was abducted and found myself at the mercy of an Irken invader. He was ordered to find the means to conquer my planet and subdue my species. But before he was able to do that he presented me to the Tallest, and when he was sent on another mission they… captured me and threw me into their arena. There I faced a pack of defect SIR units, two Vorn and an Irken mass murderer… I killed all of them before I collapsed myself, already at the brink of death.

The invader who abducted me made sure I wouldn’t die and took me with him again. I got a chance to mix a heavy drug under his food and contact you when he was unconscious. I… I got the password from another prisoner. A Vortian named Jak… I owe my life to him.” She whispered and thought for a moment before she added: “Just like an Irken scientist who had overcome her Pak’s Codes and died as a free Irk. She sacrificed herself for my sake.” Now she felt stupid, and all of it sounded so incredibly unlikely that she was sure the rebels would laugh at her.

Yet Tork only nodded slowly with a serious face. Around them the other aliens had stopped working and listened to her story. But they were quickly returning to their chores when a stern look from the Vortian Commander fell on each and every one of them.

    “You sure have gone through a lot of horrible things, more than most people on this ship. It must’ve been a terrible experience in the claws of these monsters!” he hissed and had no idea how close to the truth he was with this expression. Jenna trembled at the thought of the Tallest and her backpack slumped from her shoulders as she could no longer keep the strength to straighten them. The Vortian continued to examine her, his eyes rested on her patch and the framework around her knee that strained the cloth of her pants. “And moreover you seem to have suffered some severe injuries that aren’t fully healed yet. Is there anything we can do for you?” He asked sincere and there was the faintest trace of pity in his voice but Jenna took heart from that.

    “I… don’t suppose you could maybe take me back to Earth?” she murmured and he shook his head, as expected.

    “I’m sorry, but we’re too far away from that particular corner of the galaxy and we have information the Irken armada is standing between us and this quadrant. And even if we weren’t that far off: This is a warship. We’re constrained to pick up any survivors, rebels and fugitives in this quadrant on our patrol but changing course would be a grave insubordination that I wouldn’t pay for alone.” He gave her an apologetic shrug and she nodded, of course she understood that Tork wasn’t willing to risk the reputation of his crew and his ship because of a stranded alien from god-knew-where.

She wanted to deny his offer, but then she changed her mind.

    “Well, it would be great if you have someone who could take a look at my knee and my eye so that I get an idea if they’re healing or not.”

That seemed to elate the Vortian Commander, he stood up and indicated her to follow.

    “I would’ve sent you to the MedBay either way. Every new member has to undergo a thorough examination from our Chief Medical Officer, to make sure they’re not carrying any lethal diseases or even tracking devices. In your rather special case we first need to check if there’re any files about your species that we can use.”

She followed him all the way back through the ship, deeper into the center. While they walked Jenna recognized the sheer amount of crew members and cleared her throat.

    “Excuse me, but how many live on this ship? It seems so gigantic!” she asked curiously and Tork gave an amused snort.

    “Oh, we’re not even close to the  _Massive_ ’s complement but at the moment we’re counting 500 crew members, two dozen more are out there scouting. But please, don’t think that this is already the whole resistance.” He added with a low chuckle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay Jenna made some new friends! Now all's going to be fine :) yeah~


	30. Decision - Pt. 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Check out the C U R I O S I T Y Playlist on 8Tracks!  
> http://8tracks.com/thetruemek/c-u-r-i-o-s-i-t-y

### \- 15 Decision -  

#### Part 3

  
The MedBay was a lot bigger than what she had seen on the  _Massive_  and significantly more lively. A couple aliens, mostly Ilenians and few Vortians in white coats over the usual black catsuits walked through the spacious room that had multiple biers aligned at the walls left and right. Except for the medical staff the MedBay was currently empty.   
  
A tall Ilenian sat at a desk across the room, flanked by a clutch of analyzers and other tabletop devices, going over a stack of data tablets like Set used them. His white coat had red and golden epaulettes and a black collar and without even knowing him Jenna was sure that this was Chief Medical Officer Nemon.

As soon as Tork approached the desk the Ilenian raised his look slightly irritated and then snapped all four eyes open.

    “By Il2, what are you bringing into my lab now?” he stood up immediately, circling Jenna with flagrant curiosity. “Exceedingly fascinating, though a little bit on the primitive side I have to admit… can it understand us?”

    “Probably not.” Jenna replied arid and watched content how the Ilenian flinched, looking rather abashed putting his foot in his mouth like that.

But not a second later he was examining her all over again, his scholarly thirst for knowledge greater than his remorse.

    “Oh… yes, this seems definitely familiar to me! Bipedalism, two arms, five digits… bi-symmetric anatomy…” He lifted one strand of hair and nibbled at it what made her wrinkle her nose. “Skin appendages made of keratin-complexes, yet not controllable…” he bent over her to closely study her intact eye. “Higher evolved eyes that can see pretty far… made to distinct between colors, movements and lighting conditions, and to orientate by that. Even though they’re only insufficiently specialized as is the whole body. A very young species, and judging from what I’ve seen so far…” he straightened himself and crossed his arms in front of his chest with a soft smile. “I’d say that this is an individual of the species ‘human’. Very rarely seen outside their home world, no considerable space travel. Where in all the galaxy did you find him, Commander?” he added with a baffled chuckle.

Silently Jenna had endured the procedure but now she was staring at the Ilenian physician with her mouth standing open.

If he had only the glimmer of an idea about humans he would prove to be a bigger help than anyone else on this ship!

Tork sighed next to her.

    “She, doctor. The  _individual_  is female.” He corrected the zealous doctor and now Nemon seemed even more embarrassed than the first time, his hand twitched as if he wanted to hide his face in shame. She grinned at him. “Her name is Jenna and we received her distress signal from an Irken Recon Spacerunner. She got abducted… You seem to have experience with this species?”

The doctor shrugged.

    “I’m fairly familiar with their anatomy, but I’d need some more data on their physiology to finish my first report on them. Got to dissect one, two Plookesians sold me his corpse when I was stationed on Il2.”

Jenna flinched and backed off from him nervously. Tork shot her an apologetic smile, putting a hand on her shoulder to calm her.

    “Well, we’d prefer to have her on his ship  _alive_. Jenna, I leave you in the extremely capable hands of Doctor Nemon. Return to the Command Bridge once you’re done. And welcome aboard the  _Rebellion_.” With this the Vort left and she stayed behind with a slightly lost expression.

Nemon gave her an encouraging nod and walked over to one of the biers. He told her to disrobe and she obeyed albeit being a bit shamefaced but he didn’t seem to take greater notice of her bareness.

Humming lost in thoughts the Ilenian inspected her from head to toe. First of he only placed both his hands on her temples, then her neck and her belly. After a few minutes he nodded contented and continued with taking samples of her skin, her hair and even a blood sample which he handed to his assistants to attend to her injuries next. At it he quietly mumbled away, apparently he was taking mental notes or recorded a report.

    “The patient evidently has been involved in multiple fights only recently… Traces of a stab wound under the right shoulderbone – no, two actually, one of them a bit older and already healed.” He commented and brushed over the stitched wound under her collarbone.

    “That’s called ‘collarbone’.” She interrupted him under her breath and he looked up surprised before his expression brightened.

    “Correction: the osseous structure which builds the socket for the upper arm bone is called ‘collarbone’. Will have the human endoskeleton correctly named on occasion. Continuing.”

Jenna smiled. She knew nearly everything about human anatomy and physiology. Nemon wouldn’t be able to write a report but a whole book on it.

He protocoled every injury he found before turning around to one of his assistants who patiently waited behind him with a Datapad in his hand. “Results of hair and skin samples came back negative; no infestations with superficial parasites or other life forms. Still awaiting the complete analysis of the bacterial-profile before commending a thorough disinfecting cleansing.”

She cut in again as polite as she could although the thought of a probably aggressive disinfectant made her shiver.

    “Disinfecting me won’t be necessary; the bugs on my skin are a defense against potentially dangerous bacteria and my usual hygiene should do to keep them under control.”

Nemon nodded thankfully again, even though he now seemed genuinely astonished by her boldness to correct him.

The examination went on and the longer it took the more Jenna relaxed and the more she realized that this was really happening. She still couldn’t believe that she actually ran away, that she should be safe now.

The Ilenian doctor tended to her eyepatch in the meantime.

    “I will now begin the examination on the injured eye, a temporary removal of the Irken patch is required to categorize the kind and extent of the injury. It’s questionable if the human organ was recognized by the Irken tech or if the eye might be beyond any chance of healing it since the lack of a species-complying treatment.”

At this comment Jenna closed her remaining eye and clutched the edge of the bier, her calm was blown off, her heart pounding again.

Nemon took a slender tool and touched the eyepatch with it. An electrical shock went through her head bit she just gritted her teeth and felt dully how the clamps loosened. It made a gross sound when Nemon removed the patch from her eye and put it on the tray next to him. With her left eye she could see dried and fresh blood on the metal frame.

The Ilenian took two tweezers to carefully open her eyelid. It hurt pretty badly and Jenna clenched her fists. His face stayed unmoved the whole time until he called for the assistant who brought him a light and leveled it at her eye. “The right eye was apparently stabbed with a sharp weapon, an Irken spider leg I presume… and… as far as I can tell the visual nerve wasn’t damaged. The lens seems to be almost repaired whereas the corneal hasn’t closed. My prognosis is: Since the visual nerve wasn’t damaged and the organ seems to be responding well to the Irken treatment I envisage a full recovery in the next five to seven cycles.” He finished and smiled softly. Jenna exhaled hard, it sounded like a mixture of laughing and sobbing.

    “That’s damn good news…” she said quietly as Nemon attached the patch again. The metal pins buried in her scalp but she barely noticed it anymore. Lastly the Medical Chief turned to her knee and took a close look at the framework around it. He frowned slightly.

    “Oh my… the right leg was exposed to critically high temperatures while the left knee appears to be replaced by synthetic components to a high percentage. It’s still strange that the Irken tech works on the alien organism. I will have to remove the framework…” he muttered, snapping his fingers. Immediately two assistants came over and grabbed Jenna by her shoulders. Panic rose in her; when the machine on the  _Massive_  had fastened the splint to her leg she had been nearly unconscious and drugged with Pakrit and adrenaline. But now she was sober.

    “C- Can’t you like… numb the leg somehow?” she asked nervously but doctor Nemon shook his head regretful.

    “Not without having run thorough tests on your blood and body to see what works best on you. I’m sorry, but please try to relax.” He explained apologetic. Jenna let herself sink into the grasp of the assistants and took her jacket’s sleeve to put it between her teeth. Nemon’s compassion soothed her a little and also did the calming sounds of the nurses that held her. Despite all that she screamed loudly when the first screw was pulled out of her bone and blood splashed on Nemon’s coat. Another assistant rushed to his side at once, stopping the bleeding by cauterizing the wound. The smell of burnt skin and the pain made her retch but Nemon didn’t give her a minute to catch her breath as he pulled out the second of eight screws out her leg.

   


She was started from her unconsciousness when something fell to the floor next to her and she sat up abruptly. Her body and most of all her leg protested viciously against the unpleasant wake up call. Jenna groaned and tried to blink the tears away. A hand touched her shoulder and she jerked her arms up.

Nemon looked down at her worried. From this up close she could see the sand-colored stripes between the darker ones that covered his skin like those of a tiger and ran over his face. His four eyes were of a reddish brown with dark streaks around the star-shaped pupils, and now they looked at her softly what stood in stark contrast to the hard lines around his mouth. They made him look older than most Ilenians she had seen by now.

    “You’re awake at last… we were really worried about you. You lost consciousness after the last screw was out and I had to continue with some tests. Your leg looks good and the synthetic parts within have been accepted by your immune system and it’s slowly rebuilding the inner structure. Alas we had to completely detach the splint and there’s no possible way to fasten it back to your leg without dealing more damage. I'm afraid you will have to lie down for a while,” He added with an excusing shrug.

Jenna frowned before she remembered her suit.

    “And what if I adjust my suit so that it’ll fully support my left leg?” she retorted hopeful and Nemon lifted his hand in a hefting manner. 

    “We’d have to see how that works out for you but I definitely deem it a good idea. The light exercise would mix the fluids in your knee and accelerate the healing process. Oh, and I think I should tell you that I took some more samples of your blood; and also from your body’s orifices… your genitals included.”

Jenna took a second to comprehend what he said and immediately flinched so hard that the Chief Medical Officer took a startled step back. “Is something wrong? I apologize for this trespassing of your intimacy without your consent but the complete checkup is required in order to let you stay…” he broke off confused when she still wouldn’t move a muscle.

Jenna’s thoughts were all over the place. What if Nemon would find traces of Set in those specific samples?! What if the  _true_ nature of her relationship to him would get exposed? The more intimate, gentle moments between them? She doubted that the rebels would feel very sympathetic for her affair with an Irken invader, they would most likely throw her out the airlock!

But then she stopped her panicked thinking and recollected what the members of the resistance really knew about her. Only that she was apparently a pitiful victim of the Irken wrath. Nobody could know what horrors she sustained  _apart_  from all her superficial injuries...

    “I… I just thought about what you might find in those samples… not a very pleasant thought.” She replied quietly, what wasn’t a lie. Nemon didn’t seem to understand what she was getting at, though. Now Jenna bet all she got on her acting skills and her already pained expression. “Do you know of the Irken Code 900 by any chance?” she asked faintly, wrapping her arms around her naked body. Now the Ilenian widened his eyes in conception and stuttered:

    “Oh! I…- yes… I know the meaning behind this Code. Forgive me, I had no idea…” but he couldn't speak out the horrible thought. His sincerely shocked reaction made her throat clench painfully. Being met with this much condolence felt so good, so  _familiar_ , that she felt like crying. Overwhelmed she reached out, grabbing Nemon’s arm to both calm and thank him.

    “It’s okay, you don’t need to apologize, Sir. I’m just so glad to be safe now.” And she meant it that way. She would have never thought that pure, unlimited and almost  _human_  emotions felt this good. It felt right. “Thank you for everything. It’s nice to have somebody looking after my injuries. Although I gotta say I’ve gotten pretty good at patching myself up.” She added with a crooked grin. That loosened the awkward situation and Nemon sank down on his stool again.

    “Please, call me Nemon. I suppose you yourself took an active part in medicine on your home planet, and since I believe that I can learn a lot from you we should treat each other as equals. So: Commander Tork told me you mixed something into the Irken’s food that put him to sleep. What exactly was that substance?”

She shook her head.

    “I have no idea… It was a black pearl made from some sort of powder that I got from a Prerk leader.” She laughed at Nemon’s appalled expression, “The ship I was on got attacked by a Prerk horde and my abductor was captured and taken on their ship. I… I followed him to get him out of there. I wouldn’t have survived on the Irken ship on my own. It all went down that we proposed a bargain to the Prerk and my blood played a certain role in it. It turned out they were craving my blood for the iron molecules bound in it. I was left on the Prerk ship as a pawn and their leader gave me the drug because he had pity on me. After all I’m really glad he did.” And idea struck her and she added: “Actually, there might still be some of it left in my jacket’s pocket.”

Nemon nodded enthusiastic and got up to get Jenna her clothes and also the suit. They did find a few crumbs of the pearl inside her jacket and the Ilenian vanished excited to analyze the matter.

Jenna smiled and sank back on the bier. She would need food and something to drink pretty soon but her body wasn’t obeying her properly anymore. All the tension she had felt over the last days was suddenly gone, the constant feeling of anxiety and being threatened fell from her and all that was left was a deep relief and a heavy tiredness. She allowed herself to curl up on the stretcher and close her eye.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So now you know what happened to Mr. Dwicky... may he rest in pieces.
> 
> ANYWAY! Jenna's galactic journey took a turn for the better; although you must ask yourself what happened to Set :O well, fear not, we shall hear from him in the next chapter!! 
> 
> Until then, have a nice week you guys, it's exam prep for me ;-;


	31. Welcome to the Resistance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Check out the C U R I O S I T Y Playlist on 8Tracks!  
> http://8tracks.com/thetruemek/c-u-r-i-o-s-i-t-y

### \- 16 Welcome to the Resistance -

 

_Set’s ship – 20 hours after sending the distress signal – 10 days 10 hours after abduction_

 

Set woke up slowly.

It was more a back and forth between sleep and dozing. Once he thought he could hear SIR but the leady darkness already swallowed him again. As time went on he woke more frequently from his slumber and faintly noticed that his Pak was seething hot and working like crazy. SIR was back and suddenly someone punched him in the face!

Dead sure it was the human trying to sprawl her limbs all over him again in her sleep he shot up with a snarl and blinked into the glaring light of SIR’s blue lens. Confused he tried to sat up, yet slumped back immediately with a pained groan. His head felt as if he’d run into a wall at full speed. Also his Pak was sending him multiple warning messages! What in the world happened to him? All he could recall was that Jenna had brought him something to drink…

Ignoring his agony he sat upright again and stared at SIR, a misgiving creeping up on him.

    “Where is she?” he wanted to know.

The robot seemed reluctant whether to answer his master, why he grabbed him and bared his teeth menacingly. “Where. Is. The. Earthworm?!” the Irken growled. SIR gave in under the wrathful glare of his master.

    “Gone, master! She contacted some alien filth and sent them our coordinates! I tried to stop her but you were in danger so I let her go to protect you! Forgive me, master, I failed you!” he uttered a wailing howl and Set dropped him taken aback.

 Gone? As in: She up and left?  _Escaped_?!

He had trouble computing the thought. She couldn’t be  _gone_! She wouldn’t dare to run away after all that had happened, she had  _promised_  him not to run away! Where would she go anyway? Back to Earth? Or did she somehow manage to contact these blasted rebels she had been going on about? She couldn’t seriously believe that they would take her in! After all the incident on  _Free Haven_  should have made clear that she would get killed without a disguise!

Set snarled and swung his legs out of the bed. His Pak blared warningly again; apparently it was occupied with filtering a substance from his blood. Now he remembered passing out after finishing that cup! Where was it?

He spotted it on the floor next to the bed and picked it up. For that he had to bend down what immediately set his brain ablaze. When he was able to open his eyes without seeing stars he noticed a watery rest on the cup’s bottom, with strange black crumbs swimming inside. He handed SIR the cup. “Let the Computer analyze this stuff…”

The robot scurried off to the lab, happy for a chance to redeem himself and not five minutes later he heard his own voice blaring out of the ship’s speakers. His antennae flinched at the loud noise and lay flat on his head.

    “Analysis of unknown sample – Result: Sugary beverage. Foreign contaminant: Prerk narcotic substance, entry in the database as ‘Black Hole’. Drugs Irken for estimated 24 Ti, takes effect immediately after consumption and is very difficult to degrade. Recommend connecting to Pak-Filter-System.” The Computer finished his report and Set groaned annoyed. The Filter-System would take him out of action for two more hours! And yet he wanted to check the long-range COMM stat to find out about the other ship’s signature before it would be out of scanning range!

His legs hardly obeyed his will as he tried to get up and staggered towards the elevator. His Pak sent more alarms but he ignored them.  He couldn’t use his spider legs as crooks since all other function of his Pak were blocked due to the filtering process to conserve energy. That was one of the reasons why Irken invaders didn’t intoxicate themselves.

Cussing he sank against the elevator wall and punched the control panel. The way towards the Bridge was even more strenuous and when he was finally able to slump on his seat almost half an hour had passed.

    “Computer, which ship was lastly in the immediate proximity to this position?” he panted, gasping for air and the throbbing headache made him clench his teeth. The ship’s computer named model, velocity and finally the signature of the foreign ship. The Irken searched in the COMMs record database and smiled grimly. Jenna might have had planned this out very smartly but she had omitted deleting the docking-protocol and the last communications to cover up her tracks.

With perked antennae he listened to the transmission and recognized a Vortian voice giving the human orders how to open the lower hatch. His forehead wrinkled up in fury as the name of the Vortian was mentioned he had met in the prison. So that’s how she got to know about how to contact the rebels! He should have killed that Jak guy back on the  _Massive_ … just so he couldn’t feel the triumph he had to experience right now.

And he should’ve blown up the Prerk! To hell, he should have never let her out of that damn tube he had caught her in! That’s how this whole mess had started anyway! But how should he have known that Jenna would be able to do something like this?

Angry he punched a command in the console to track down the rebel ship and pursue it via autopilot, before he rose from his seat again and weaved with unsteady steps down into the lab.

Jenna might be thinking that she’d escaped his grasp, but she would soon realize that an elite invader never lets go of what he has claimed for himself!  
  


   
  


 _Aboard the_ Rebellion _– Same time_

 

Meanwhile Jenna woke up a lot gentler and in a much better mood than Set, what probably had to do with the tray full of food in front of her when she opened her eye. She was still naked but someone – probably Nemon – had covered her up in a blanket under which she now stretched with relish, yawning quietly. Her leg was still aching from the rough treatment but now that she was sure it would heal she didn’t mind the pain.

Curiously she smelled the air and her stomach promptly started growling; the hunger was more than unpleasant, painful actually, as the shrunken organ cramped at the mere thought that the whole pile in front of her should be edible. But before she could gulp down everything, no matter the consequences it might entail, Nemon entered the room.

    “Good, you’re awake. Go on, eat. I analyzed your blood and made a plan based on the results on what you can eat. We might stock up our supplies for you-“, he went silent as the human dug into the food with an almost feral sound. For a second he watched her flabbergasted, then he sank down on the bier across from her and waited patiently until she was done.

Jenna only managed to eat half of it; a little embarrassed she put the plate back and stifled a burp. If her stomach had been near to imploding earlier it was now impending to explode. Exhausted she slumped against the stretcher’s headpiece and wiped across her face. She would've given anything for a cigarette right now…

    “Sorry… I just didn't get to eat anything proper in quite some time.” She apologized and the Ilenian shook his head.

    “I know how you must have felt. Many members of the Resistance we picked up on our way were as starved as you. But please be considerate with yourself, I’m not sure how human digestive organs react to such extremes. It might be possible that you’ll get cramps.”

She shrugged.

    “Well, it’s totally worth it. I’ve gotten so scraggy I don’t know if I’ll ever get my normal shape back.” She replied smiling and patted her now flat tummy that bulged a little from the food. Back on Earth she would have loved a flat stomach but here it was probably better having a few resources.

Nemon smirked.

    “Well, not here, that’s for sure. Food is rationed, like just about everything else except maybe for air. But I’m not really sure about that.” He laughed, an alien sound but distinctly a laughter. Jenna smiled and wrapped the blanket tighter around herself.

    “How did you analyze my blood so quickly? On Earth it would have taken at least a few days to perform such extensive analyses.” She asked intrigued. Nemon stood up and waited patiently for her to get dressed and wrap the belt around her hip even though he could obviously see how excited she was; it seemed the Medical Officer was quite happy to have somebody new who was actually interested in something else than just taking revenge on the Irken Empire. It took her some time to adjust the settings of the suit but she somehow figured out how to eject only the leg armor to support her knee and cautiously followed him into the back area of the MedBay.

Another door separated it from the laboratories that were filled with all kinds of machines and analyzers. At this point only some of them were activated and Nemon stepped in front of one to show her the data displayed on a screen next to the machine. Jenna frowned. She couldn’t read a thing.

    “This is a Structural Composition Reader, or SCR for short. It recognizes certain molecular structures and forms of compounds in bigger molecule clusters, comparing it to already known ones to find out what kind of substance or substance classes we’re dealing with. With so many species and life forms it is essential to have if you want to provide the best medical care for each and every one of them. Take the Irken, for example: Their metabolism relies mostly on a pure sugar-based diet. They need this form of energy for their Paks to operate smoothly. Vortian and, as I was able to figure out, humans need first and foremost levorotatory amino acids and fatty acids to survive. Ilenian however subsist mainly on minerals. I couldn’t even digest your kind of food.”

Jenna listened enthralled. Meeting aliens was one thing. But to actually know how they lived and functioned was even better; it made them  _less_  alien.

    “I’d love to know more about the other members of the  _Rebellion_  and… I want to help out in the MedBay and the lab if there’s a chance, since that’s pretty much the only thing I feel  _secure_  about even in space. Unfortunately I can’t read your language and you all seem to use something else than Irken. Could you maybe teach me the language?” she asked both excited and timid but Nemon seemed to feel flattered.

    “Oh, I’d be more than pleased! Luckily for you we came across a better and faster method to learn both language and script than the mere theoretical education. It is more like a direct transmission of knowledge into your brain; the effect is astonishing! The Meekrob developed and perfected this technology to educate their scouts and ambassadors to communicate with other species. You won’t even notice the difference from your mother language. Also you won’t need your translator anymore.” The Ilenian replied with a wide smile and she blinked baffled.

    “Weren’t the Meekrob defeated by the Irken?” She remembered Set telling her that the Meekrob had sold Earth’s coordinates to save their own skin. She flinched when she thought of Set. He must’ve had woken up by now… gladly Nemon just nodded surprised and completely missed her start.

    “Yes, exactly. The Meekrob were the Empire’s sworn enemies and because of their sophisticated technology and knowledge they proved to be a lucrative target for the Irken. They are creatures of pure energy that surpassed the limits of a physical body ages ago, and even for galactic standards they were very highly developed. Their downfall was a grievous blow for us. Meanwhile the few survivors have been scattered across the whole galaxy during their escape and it grows ever so seldom that one of them contacts the Resistance.”

Suddenly the door behind them opened and Tork entered the lab, a half amused, half serious look on his face.

    “Ah, there you are. Jenna, I would need to talk to you about your stay on this ship. I know, you probably still feel pretty jaded but if you want to stay on this ship we’ll have to find you some work.” he greeted them and Nemon grinned, putting a hand on Jenna’s shoulder. 

    “Don’t worry, Commander, she already asked to help out in the MedBay and the medical laboratories since she did quite a similar kind of work back on her planet. Of course I will see to her education personally.” He said proudly and Jenna looked up to him with her mouth opening in utter stun. She hadn’t expected  _this_. Tork looked just as nonplussed.

    “Oh… well, I guess that’s adequate… Alright. Then I hope you’ll accustom yourself quickly.” He wanted to turn around already but then he lifted a finger and stopped as though he remembered what else he’d wanted in here and gave Jenna a serious glance. “Can you handle weapons? I’m talking guns, rifles.”

The human shook her head with wide eye.

    “Well, there was one time when I fired some sort of fusion canon at a bunch of SIR units but apart from that I don’t really know how to shoot, sorry.” She admitted apologetic.

Tork’s expression brightened, even though he still looked a bit grumpy doing so.

    “Excellent! In that case I shall take you to the firing range later on so you can practice.”

With this he disappeared and Jenna shot Nemon a nervous side glance. But he waved her off.

    “No need to be afraid; he won’t send you to the front. But everyone on the ship must be trained in dealing with weapons so we don’t stand around useless in case of an attack. I think the best would be to put you into the Lingudrom for now, at least so long until Tork is ready to take you to the firing range.” He explained and Jenna finally realized why she had a familiar feeling being around Tork.

    “Hey, does the Commander have, like, a brother whose name is Trook?” she asked the doctor before he could drag her along. Perplexed he looked down on her.

    “Indeed, he’s his younger brother… but how did you get to know him?”

She cursed herself mentally for her big mouth; how was she supposed to explain that she met the Vortian while doing a casual errand for Set on the camping planet?! 

    “I- I met him once… it’s difficult to explain but he kinda saved my life and made up my mind to escape.”

Surprisingly enough Nemon seemed to notice that she didn’t want to talk about it and took her explanation without comment or pressing her.

They left the lab and didn’t walk long until the Ilenian opened a door asking her in with a soft smile. Jenna flinched slightly; the Lingudrom looked more like a death-chair with spacey extras than a highly evolved learning-device. But she trusted Nemon and allowed him to plaster her head and neck with the contacts, hooking her up to the Meekrobian tech. At least the seat was comfy.

The doc disappeared behind a row of screens and suddenly blue light engulfed her like a supernatural glimmer without glaring her. Excited Jenna leaned her head back and closed her eye. The humming of the machine grew deeper until It focused inside her head and she faintly heard a voice calling her from far away. Then she got overwhelmed by a wave of impressions; before her inner eye she recognized two aliens, Vortians, who smiled and apparently talked to their newborn child. To her.

Like in a time lapse she got older, heard more new words and started timid to communicate with her parents, telling them when she was hungry or sad. She got older, took her first steps and soon she talked to other Vorts, told jokes and learned more and more. It felt like a lifetime.

All of a sudden it got dark around her and Jenna opened her eye, confused as to why her small world was vanishing. After blinking a few times she noticed new contours; no, they were actually old. Now she remembered who she really was and stared with wide eye in Nemon’s face.

    “I see this was quite an overwhelming experience for you. How do you feel?” he asked amused and she blurted out. But only when she was done she spotted her headset dangling from his finger and raised a hand to her mouth.

    “Wait a sec… did I just tell you all of that in Vortian?” and now she noticed her voice. It were grunting and growling sounds she made yet very subtle and fine in their pronunciation and intonation.

Nemon grinned wider, laugh lines built around his upper pair of eyes.

    “You still are. Say something in  _your_  language.”

It was no problem for her to change into human language and back.

    “That is absolutely  _amazing_! And I can learn any language like that?” she asked eager, ready for another round. The Ilenian raised his hands to slow her.

    “Easy now. It takes a while and demands constant practice to fully master the new language so you don’t forget it so easily. Until then more languages would be counterproductive and even dangerous. I’ve known students who got addicted to the Lingudrom and in the end only uttered an unintelligible jabbering because the languages were merging and mixing. Furthermore it depends on your brain capacity on how many languages you are able to learn. The Lingudrom only accelerates the process.” He admonished her with a stern look. Jenna slouched her shoulders; she had wanted so badly to learn Irken as well. Nemon smiled indulgently.

“But don’t worry, I’m sure you can learn at least two more language if you learned Vortian that fast.” He helped her with the contacts and was already heading for the door. “Let’s get you to the firing range, Tork must be waiting for you.”

Jenna cocked a brow.

    “That was fast? How long was I in there?” Although the time was sped up it had felt like some hours passed. At least.

Nemon tilted his head.

    “Oh, not more than half an hour.” With that he left the room and Jenna needed a second to clutch the chair before her knees stopped trembling and she ran after him.  
  
  
  


 

The firing range was similar to those on Earth, with the difference that no cardboard  _humans_  were lined up at the end, but Irken.

Tork was just putting multiple weapons on a counter when Jenna entered. Nemon had left after escorting her to the shooting range since he was called back to the MedBay.

Now she scrutinized the grim-faced Vortian. He was scarred, just like Jak, but much sturdier. She saw brawny muscles playing under the tight fitting catsuit as he lifted a huge crate up on the counter and loaded the guns, and although his back-bent legs were thin they too were brimming with muscles.

She stepped closer and waited till he was done aligning the guns and turned around to her. His small, glowing eyes examined her closely.

    “You’re still looking a bit feeble but that won’t change without the proper training.” He knocked on the counter. “C’mere, no need to be afraid.”

She did as she was told and approached.

    “I’m not afraid… only that you send me running laps. I hate running and I’ve surely had enough for the past days.” To her own surprise she laughed at this. Tork smirked.

    “Your Vortian is much better without the translator. Very… melodic.” Then he took the first weapon, a pistol judging by its size, and gave it to her before he started his lecture pointing on a little slider at the top of the gun. “This right here is the safety catch. If a gun hums, hisses or glows it’s locked and loaded and ready to fire. Some of the bigger ones take a certain time to charge and frequently get some of the overly zealous recruits in hot water because they didn’t keep the loading time in mind. But this one is light and quick.” He showed her how to hold the pistol; Jenna had to put her hand inside it where she grabbed onto a handle with a simple button on the top of it like a joystick – the trigger. The pistol was elegant and curved as it wrapped around her hand and wrist like a well-fitting glove made of white metal. The notch looked like a shark fin and she felt the warmth of the weapon that Tork activated with a push on the round panel on the side. The ovally formed muzzle started glowing faintly and she quickly switched the safety lock.

Jenna stared at the gun and was marveled that it looked so beautiful. She would’ve loved to keep it but she doubted that the Commander would just give away such a masterpiece.

Tork detached an element at the bottom of the barrel that she hadn’t noticed until now. Though she already knew what it was before he could say it. It wasn’t hard to guess what Tork was waving in front of her nose.

“That’s the magazine. Ammunition. Always carry  _plenty_. Unless you have a modified weapon with a blade. Then it won’t be  _that_  bad if you can’t shoot anymore. Depends on the situation. There are many different types of ammunition, but the most common and by the way cheapest one is Thermal-Plasma rounds. Extremely hot and fast; so make sure you don’t shoot your foot.”

He made her build the magazine in and out a few times until she could do it without looking before he actually showed her how to aim the weapon and finally a laser bullet flashed across the firing range. Jenna frowned. None of the Irken looked hit in any way. Tork chortled.

    “Don’t worry, it’ll buff out. Just concentrate and watch your posture.” A human shot would’ve told her to hold her breath shortly before taking the shot but Vortian didn’t need to do that. They were able to freeze their muscles for multiple seconds without twitching what made them amazing marksmen and even better nude models.

She trained for over an hour until she couldn’t even hold the small pistol anymore. 

When Jenna raised her trembling arm again she automatically held her breath. And suddenly the Irken head had a scorching, smoking hole in his head. Jenna flinched in shock. Tork grunted, if out of scoff or content she couldn’t tell. But she was more than glad that she could finally put the gun down and get back to Nemon. The Commander urged her to come back the next cycle for another round and she promised him to come around but internally she was reluctant to shoot at the cardboard Irken again

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Long chapter cuz y'all deserve it!! The next part will have pictures again, since I'm going to introduce you to the Rebellion's crew a bit :>


	32. Welcome to the Resistance - Pt. 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Check out the C U R I O S I T Y Playlist on 8Tracks!  
> http://8tracks.com/thetruemek/c-u-r-i-o-s-i-t-y

### \- 16 Welcome to the Resistance -

##### Part 2

 _Aboard the Rebellion - Back at the MedBay_  
  
  
Yet the Ilenian didn’t pay her much attention when she came back into the MedBay; hectically he ran through the lab, grabbing a tray only to return to one of the stretchers on which his patient was lying. His assistants were atwitter as well. The floor before the door was dashed with a violet liquid.   
  
She shuffled past the assistants and Jenna’s eye widened in shock, and bafflement, as she saw the strange, bare alien lying on the bier.

Its skin was constantly changing colors, like a chameleon, but stayed a light blue for a every few seconds. Curved bone arches grew out of the muscular body on head, shoulders, hips, forearms and shins, forming a partial exoskeleton of a green color. The torso was enclosed by three pairs of external ribs and it heaved frantically; at the sides she spotted holes not unlike gills that widened with every breath the alien took. Jenna’s look traveled to its face.

It had its eyes shut firmly; big, long ears were pressed flatly to the head, as well as two rows of feelers at the side, and without having studied alien life forms she knew for sure that it was in a lot of pain!

Immediately she rushed to Nemon’s side, holding the tray he handed her while he already started working with the tools. Just now she realized that the violet fluid was blood streaming out of countless wounds covering the body, dripping down the bier.

    “Good, you’re back just in time. Get to his head. Take this and put it between his teeth, but watch out that he doesn’t bite you. Djelb have poison fangs.” Nemon ordered her and nodded towards a silicon splint. Jenna snatched it and hurried to the other side to not get in the way of anyone. The Djelb was tossing and turning despite the nurses holding him down and had his teeth clenched tightly.

A bit frantic the human thought about how to open the obviously dangerous set of teeth, when she noticed the two pairs of feelers sticking out of his chin and under his protruding cheekbones, like the barbels of a catfish. Reminded of Set’s antennae she rubbed the broad base of them. At the touch the Djelb snapped his eyes open and stared at her; they were big and of such a radiant gold and red they seemed to glow. His jaw muscles relaxed shortly from surprise and Jenna took the chance to wedge the splint between the sharp teeth and give Nemon a nod. The Ilenian grabbed another set of tools and started to actually close the wounds.

Now the alien groaned agonized, biting down once more. Tears were running down his cheeks.

The sight made Jenna gasp for air and she put a hand on his forehead to calm him. Soothing she spoke to him and unknowingly used her own language, while she gently brushed over his head. The soft, melodic sounds really seemed to work, at least the patient stopped flouncing and tossing. Jenna didn’t realize that the assistants were all staring at her bewildered.

Nemon finished the last strokes of work and put the bloodied tools back on the tray. Two of the nurses pushed the bier to the far side of the MedBay so the patient could rest. The Ilenian rubbed his hands absentminded and observed their work  before adressing her.

“You reacted very instinctively, very well. Did you do that before? Or experienced a similar situation?” he asked quietly and Jenna shook her head numbed.

    “No, not in the least… back on Earth I was always just in the lab… I guess it  _was_  instinct. My mum is a nurse, so like one of your assistants.” She replied just as silent, a little shaken now after all since the adrenaline was wearing off. Nemon looked down on her, a pitying look in all four eyes.

    “You must really miss them…” he stated sad. She barely managed to nod, the lump in her throat was paralyzing her. To change subjects she pointed at his hands that he was still rubbing together.

    “Are you alright?” she asked a bit sheepish but the Ilenian followed her gaze confused and laughed when he noticed.

    “Oh, you mean my hands. Well, you know, we Ilenians got a hand for medicine, literally. Through our skin and especially through our palms we are able to sense the electric currents of other life forms. When I establish direct skin contact to someone”, he gently put a hand on her neck, “then I can feel how fast and steady your heart is beating, how much oxygen your blood contains and whether your neurons are working properly.”

Jenna’s eye widened in fascination.

    “Wow… we can take somebodies pulse but for everything else we’d need machines.” She asked herself if Ilenians probably evolved from a line of aquatic creatures with these kinds of sensors, like sharks on Earth.

The doc walked over to his desk and she helped the assistants cleaning the tools and tidying up the place. When she reached for a laser scalpel still lying next to the Djelb on the stretcher he suddenly grabbed her wrist and pulled her around. Before Jenna even realized what happened she felt the heat of the scalpel at the crook of her neck. One of the assistants yelled startled and then everyone froze.

Jenna struggled against the firm grip of the Djelb, who had been bleeding to death a few minutes ago, but the strong, bone-reinforced arm around her chest flexed warningly, making her pant.

    “I don’t want to hurt you, tiny creature, but I’ll have to if anybody explains to me where I am in the next second.” The alien hissed into her ear. The voice had a soft, deep resonance despite the cold words as if he was talking with two voices.

When she didn’t answer but instead remained in his arms frozen from start the Djelb bent her neck back almost carefully and took a look at her face rather baffled; the long ears pricked up attentively and the six feelers on his head craned. “Hey... would you look at that… what the hell did I catch now?” 

    “A human. More specifically my newest assistant and a protégé of mine by the way, Feorn. You can let her go now, I’m afraid Jenna doesn’t find your prank particularly funny. And  _you_ lot should really get back to work!”

Nemon approached them with his hands folded on his back, addressing his assistants with a parenting frown. It was only then that Jenna realized that they were looking at each other with a knowing grin, some of them tried to stifle their laughter unsuccessfully. Stunned she stared them down until they left to get back to their stations.

She  _really_ didn’t think that this was funny at all, instead she felt a flush of shame rising to her cheeks and she tried to calm her pounding heart.  The Djelb however made a disappointed noise.

    “Aww, come on, Nemon, you’re  _always_ spoiling my fun. Alright, but only because it’s you.” With a vibrant laugh he let go of her and Jenna wheeled around to glare at him angrily. Feorn only laughed louder and raised his hands defensively. “Whoops, seems like I messed with the wrong one.” Without breaking eye contact he threw the scalpel in the air, jumped from the bier, put his head back and caught the handle between his teeth. Slowly he straightened himself and deactivated the laser to drop it into his hand. “Welp, it’s clear to see, I don’t stand a chance against you. Please, grand me a swift death, furious lady!” he sighed and handed her the knife with a little bow. But his golden eyes were still glistening amused. They were pupilless, like Set’s, yet his intelligence was reflected in them, just like the waggishness.

With a huff Jenna snatched the scalpel.

    “I don’t think you’re supposed to stand up, a few minutes ago you were a whimpering heap.” she hissed back and Feorn flinched.

    “Ouch…” he said surprised but not hurt in the least. Nemon smirked.

    “Djelb are astonishing, yet at the same time  _paradox_ creatures. Not only do most of them possess incredible reactions and swiftness but additionally have an extremely accelerated immune system. Both compensates the quite curious disadvantage that their skin is very easily to pierce and doesn’t close properly without assistance, which is why they often risk bleeding to death. And thus the most important measure with an injured Djelb is always to  _immediately_  stop wounds from bleeding. After that their bodies regenerate in, well, minutes.” He shot Feorn a stern glance. “However I would highly advise you to  _rest_! You had suffered extremely severe wounds, Feorn. What happened? You were supposed to be on reconnaissance and not engage!” he added and the Djelb did sink back down on the stretcher. He looked as if Nemon had rebuked him and grimly stared at the floor.

     “I was, Nemon. And then I came across an Irken Recon Spacerunner… was apparently going in the same direction as I was and that put me a little bit  _on edge_. I had a nice surprise readied for that dog but he caught me nonetheless before I could sneak off his ship.” He grimaced from pain. “And man, you should’ve seen his SIR-unit! Phew, a real  _monster_! I could barely make it to my fighter and get the hell out of there.”

Nemon put on a skeptic face.

    “And what sort of ‘surprise’ did you give him? I hope it wasn’t one of your homemade incendiary bombs that tend to  _backfire_  so nicely.” He asked a bit tired. Jenna looked from the Ilenian to Feorn. Apparently the Djelb pulled these pranks rather frequently.

Now he grinned widely.

    “Oh you know, just took his Navigation Unit with me as a souvenir. If he really was on your tail it should at least slow him down long enough for the  _Rebellion_  to get out of his scanning perimeter before he can repair the damage.” The Djelb snickered and laugh lines formed around his eyes.

But now Jenna was more than concerned, she was downright alarmed. If Set had woken up earlier and took up the chase… he had to be boiling with wrath.

    “How tall was that Irken?” she blurted out, her voice shrill from fear. Feorn’s reaction was unexpected; she couldn’t tell if it was the way she asked it or the question itself but he cocked a brow and sat upright, his red-golden eyes meeting her with a piercing stare and both ears and feelers lay back flatly.

    “Why do you ask? Someone you know?” he replied wary, scrutinizing her with a suddenly cold expression. His abrupt volt-face unsettled Jenna and before she could stutter an explanation she felt Nemon’s arm around her shoulder.

    “Hey, don’t scare her like that! Jenna was kidnapped by an Irken not that long ago, apparently her planet is next to fall victim to the Empire’s Operation. She was able to escape because she got the chance to drug her abductor. You got to admit that she must feel  _concerned_  having an Irken vessel following us. He caused her unimaginable suffering.” he silenced the Djelb with calm voice. Feorn looked at her again, now surprised. The cold glare was gone without a trace, replaced by the amused grin.

    “You  _drugged_  an Irken? Dang, you gotta show me how!” he laughed. Then he changed back to being (half)serious and shook his head. “A nice mental image, but the brute who roughed me up was almost twice your size! For a second I thought I had found the Tallest’s private jet! And he didn’t seem stoned one bit… someone like that wouldn’t even give you any chance to backstab him this bluntly. Or… does this sound like your guy?”

Jenna gulped. So it  _was_  Set after all. Should she tell them the truth?

She all but flinched at the thought. Why the hell  _not_?! The rebels were her friends, they had rescued her! But at the same time she didn’t want to put Set in danger. What if Feorn called for a revenge campaign? A high ranked Irken like Set, no matter if wanted or not, was a valuable leverage and above all he was alone. She didn’t want him to find her and slay everyone on this ship but also didn’t want the rebels to find and kill  _him_.

    “N- no… that’s not the one who kidnapped me. Someone like that wouldn’t have needed chains and exploding collars to keep me from escaping… it wasn’t him.” She muttered and Feorn looked a bit dashed.

    “Aww, bummer. And here I thought I had a chance to  _make up_  for the prank just now.” He sighed and looked at her from the bottom up, slightly bent over on the bier, his fingertips tapping against each other. She had to blink. His whole gestures were so human-like that it felt almost weird.  Jenna snorted.

    “Pfff, you’ll have to come up with something much better before I forgive you  _that_!”

 

Nemon ordered his assistants to keep an eye on Feorn before he took Jenna with him to show her to her quarters. The  _Rebellion_  was the flagship of the Resistance and therefore big enough for every crew member to have quarters for themselves.   
  
The four walls weren’t particularly vast but there was a nice, comfy bed, storage room for her belongings and even – she almost squealed in bliss – a spartan bathroom with a narrow shower and a mirror. The Ilenian gave her a minute to look around and handed her a small, red device reminding her of a pager.

    “A Chronometer.” he explained, “It tells you when to go to bed, apart from other things. I managed to somewhat adjust it to your biologic clock but please tell me if you need more or less sleep. Space travelling can be lethal if you lose your sense of time and having no sunrise or sundown it’s quite hard to keep a healthy sleep-wake rhythm. But you’ll get used to it.”

She followed him back through the ship to find the mess hall. Jenna tried to memorize the way but when she cast a short glance at the Chronometer in her pocket she looked at a map of the floor they were on. A little blue dot showed her quarters. At the top of the display there was a timeline in the form of a vanishing sun and she smiled amused. As alien as space appeared to be at first there were quite familiar ideas all around.

That’s why she wasn’t surprised when Nemon lead her down a floor into the mess hall where some other aliens already sat and talked over their meals.

He smiled at her. “The Chronometer aids our daily tasks aboard in many ways. For one it assists you with your sleep pattern but it also works as a full map of the ship, a pager and you can use it as ID to get your rations for example. Come, let me show you. You must be hungry.”

Jenna followed the Ilenian and felt her stomach stirring. It really was some while ago that she’d wolfed down the food in the MedBay. Curious glances followed them as Nemon lead her to some sort of vending machine, showing her where to put the Chronometer. Shortly afterwards a hatch opened and a tray with a bowl of steaming soup appeared. It smelled so good that her mouth watered.

According to her clock it was the late evening and she wasn’t sure if she would be able to handle this much food before going to sleep. The more than substantial lunch after her nap had indeed caused her some pain. But she  _had to_  eat! She didn’t want to know how lousy her nourishment levels were at the moment.

They sat down at an empty table and Jenna immediately attacked the soup. The Doc watched the famished human.

    “So, how do you feel about your first official day in the Resistance?” he asked softly.

Jenna thought about everything that had happened. She had learned a completely alien language in half an hour, shot a legit plasma gun and helped saving somebodies life, and all of that in just a few hours.

    “I- I’m a little bit overwhelmed… This still feels so unreal to me, like a weird dream from which I might wake sooner or later.” She replied with thin voice; Nemon tried to catch her gaze with a compassionate expression.

    “I’m sorry about Feorn… he is an incurable  _jester_ but he has a good heart. Despite all that you shouldn’t be scared like this in your state. It’s all still too fresh on you… if you have trouble sleeping please seek me out so I can administer a light tranquilizer, you should get all the rest you need.”

She shook her head a bit too fierce, the prank was  _still_ irritating her.

    “It’s  _alright_ , he just startled me. I’m over it.”, which was a straight lie.

Nemon eyed her pensively.

    “You know, you do remind me of one of my former assistants… an astute, intelligent lad with great potential. I met him in the streets as he tried to mug me…”

Jenna listened up and stopped for a moment before she slowly continued sipping her soup.

“He pressed a knife to my throat and I asked him to put it a bit higher. If he was to slice my throat I’d preferred a quick death rather than bleeding out miserably. He asked how I would know that and I told him I was a doctor.”

The human listened intrigued, Nemon was completely lost in thoughts, his upper pair of eyes was closed half way.

“Suddenly the knife was gone and he showed me his eyes. He was half blind; that he had managed to ambush me was astonishing. He asked if I could heal him, so I examined his eyes and told him that I would indeed be able to help him. He looked so shocked, almost terrified, and just let the knife drop. He begged of me to heal him. I asked what he was willing to give me since he had just tried to rob me. The boy sank on his knees and vowed to do anything I’d demand. And I’m sure he was serious about it. But I merely asked him to study medicine as my assistant - he seemed to know how to handle a knife.” Nemon chuckled quietly as he remembered and Jenna smiled.

    “Where is he now?” she asked softly, glad to have somebody she could talk to. But upon her innocent question his expression changed drastically. The calm Ilenian looked like a year-long grief had turned into deep, vicious hatred.

    “Dead.” Nemon growled, “When the Irken armada attacked IL I wasn’t there… I was on Vort helping some of the survivors escape from the formerly conquered planet. He… even continued tending to the injured when the already burning hospital collapsed.” He explained, now emotionless. Jenna lowered her gaze to her bowl.

    “I’m… I’m so sorry.” She mumbled downcast and suddenly lost her appetite. As much as she liked Set in  _some_  way she thought more and more that his species was the absolute worst. Nemon smiled gently.

    “We’ve all lost companions… friends, family… he was like a son to me.”

She shoved the tray away and he looked at her. A tear shimmered in his eye. “You should get some rest. We can continue tomorrow, I’ll send you a ping on your Chronometer when I need you. Since everything is strictly rationed I’d advise you to eat as much as possible for you can only get two meals a cycle.”

Jenna nodded, wished Nemon a good-night and made her way to her quarter. Her mind was still revolving around what the Ilenian had told her. The hallway to her room was empty and the boots of her suits clacked lightly on the metal floor. She was completely lost in thoughts and thus didn’t notice the flashing light at her belt until she stood in front of her door.

Confused she stared at the flashing buckle. Timid she touched it and the headset snapped from the belt. Frozen and with her heart pounding she put it over her ear, cold sweat forming on her palms.

    “So you’re not dead yet, huh?” Set’s voice.

She slammed a hand across her mouth to muffle her scream and pushed the door open to quickly close it behind her. Trembling she sank against the metal in the dark room.

“Which means that the rebels must’ve taken you in. Did the Djelb belong to you? The little filth must’ve arrived by now… or whatever is left of him.” The Irken laughed cold. Despite, or maybe because he couldn’t see her Jenna stared defiant into the darkness.

    “ _Feorn_ is alive. What’s wrong with you? Are you getting  _soft_?” she asked challenging although all her instincts warned her against taunting the invader who snarled at the other end of the line.

    “ _I’ll show you just how soft!_!” he bellowed and she closed her eyes, frowning from the uproar.

    “You’re a little too far away for me to take your threats seriously.” She replied arid while she frantically tried to make out if he was able to locate her through this transmission.

She could literally hear him bare his teeth.

    “Why did you run away? You promised!” Now his voice sounded genuinely aggrieved. Jenna couldn’t help but sigh loudly.

    “Set, I…”

    “You  _betrayed_  me!”

    “I know; but.”

    “I saved your life.”

    “Set,  _please_ , I-“

    “And this is how you repay-“

    “Would you let me finish for one  _fucking_  second?!” she yelled in Vortian and the unbelievable happened: Silence. Which extended, as she tried to calm down gasping for air.

“Yes, you saved me; yes, I promised not to run away and  _yes,_  I admit it was really sly of me to drug you and just leave you behind like that. But things have changed! Your leaders want to kill us and you’re about to fall for their lies! You abducted me, tortured me and manipulated me that I even started to  _like_ you simply because I believed you were the only one I had left in this galaxy! But I had the chance to change it all, the moment I decided to no longer defer to you.”

Set remained silent but she could hear him growl furiously. When she spoke again her voice was soft.

“I like you, Set. I really do. You sure are terribly vicious, brutal and cold, but I got to know another side of yours, a gentle one, and I really want to come back to this side. But as long as I can’t be sure you’re not going to return to your Tallest I will stay here.” She added sad and again felt the hot stone in her throat.

Although she got to get to know him as a monster, a kidnapper and invader, this monster had become a part of her at some point. And she wanted so badly to deliver this monster from its curse.

Set hissed.

    “I won’t betray my Tallest! But… I would be willing to forgive you if you came back. Really.” He beckoned; he knew that he had this sort of power over her. But she was safe now, far away from the pointed claws and sharp teeth. Only the crimson eyes would haunt her…

    “Well… that is a pity. I would have returned to you if you had made a different decision. I even would’ve returned if you had decided differently  _and_ beaten me up should I come back. But you’re still obeying them like a beaten dog that returns to his owner every time, although there’s just more beating waiting. In a way I was just like that. But I’m a human, not a dog, and I know what’s right and wrong.  
I’m sorry Set. I won’t watch you running head forward into your doom. Fare well.” With this she closed her fist around the headset and it crunched as she crushed the fragile gadget.    
  
Exhausted and empty Jenna sat slumped against the door, the headset’s broken bits scattered on the floor.

She couldn’t tell where she got the strength to stand up and collapse on the bed. Pushing the belt buckle the suit retracted and revealed an emaciated young woman, covered in bruises and black and blue marks with an eye patch wrapped around her head. Without the armor she appeared even smaller and more vulnerable than already.

The traces of a harsh, merciless galaxy were branded inerasably into her body and soul, like the Irken mark on her wrist. Jenna thought about all of that and decided she was way too tired to brood over her future. Right now she was preliminary safe and that was more than she had ever dared to hope for. But when the dark room stayed quiet she crawled away into the blanket and dampened her sobs with the pillow.

 

 

   

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sooo, Set's mad with rage and even madder now that Jenna just hung up on him like dat xD
> 
> also INTRODUCING FEORN! The dorkiest jester shit in the galaxy, but he's a cutie, so ye  
> this is by the way the actual height difference between Tork and Feorn (Tork's like Jenna's height, around 1,60 m)
> 
> thanks for Kudos and so many hits, see you next Sunday ♥


	33. Welcome to the Resistance - Pt. 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Check out the C U R I O S I T Y Playlist on 8Tracks!  
> http://8tracks.com/thetruemek/c-u-r-i-o-s-i-t-y

### \- 16 Welcome to the Resistance -

##### Part 3

 

She wasn’t fully awake yet, still half drowned in sleep. A blissful dozing in nothingness and oblivion.

Then it knocked at her door. A bothering noise that wouldn’t really suit nothingness and oblivion. Jenna almost forgot about it when it knocked again; louder, more annoying. Growling she wedged a hand under her body and activated the suit.

    “Yeahimcoming…” she groused reluctant and got out of bed. Yawning she tried to bend the mess that was her hair, and opened the door. Feorn grinned so widely that she could see his pointed poison fangs.

    “Eyo, slugabed! Nemon sends me… haven’t heard his pings, have you?” he greeted her cheerily and leaned against the doorframe. Jenna rubbed her eyes irritated.

    “And he sends  _you_  out of all people, because…?” she asked in turn and thought spotting an aggrieved look in his eyes.

    “Erm, well I gotta go to the MedBay myself for a checkup and he asked me to get you while I’m at it. Are you  _hungry_ , by any chance?”

She shook her head in disbelief but couldn’t hide a smile. The Djelb apparently wasn’t willing to be deterred by her sour mood in any way.              
    “Only if there’s gonna be coffee.” She answered him back and he tilted his head to the side, curious and asking. “It’s something that wakes me up and right now I would die for one.” She explained with a sigh and his grin returned with full force.

    “Hmm, I think I might be able to help you then.”

 

She followed him to the mess hall and towards a second vending machine. Feorn actually managed to make a hot beverage magically appear. The smell made her recoil at first but when he kept urging her to take a sip it tasted sweet like caramel and she literally felt a kick flashing through her body, like a double expresso injected directly into her bloodstream. Baffled and thankful she stared at Feorn.

He shrugged it off and chuckled.

    “So, is that what you had in mind?” he asked, pleased with himself, and she nodded quickly. After she was done they headed towards the MedBay, silently walking next to each other, and Jenna’s tread was a lot less scuffling than a few minutes ago.

Feorn was shooting her some scrutinizing side glances from time to time. When she caught at it he smiled at her, not even trying to avoid her stare.

    “What?” she asked rather confused than angry. However he twisted his mouth for a second.

    “I was just wondering how someone as small as you managed to cope with so much terror. You gotta be way tough.” He replied and quietly looked away again. Jenna stumbled due to the somewhat weird compliment.

    “You think so? Well I’m just thinking that I’ve never been this scared and disturbed in my whole life. That’s not exactly  _tough_.” She gave back stiffly. The Djelb snorted.

    “What you mean is  _strength_. And that’s a rare trait – only few people are really strong out there.” he shrugged, “I’m not strong. I’ve seen too many innocent die for that.”

That stung her. She didn’t know if his home world had already been destroyed by the Irken but could very well imagine it to be. Jenna was about to apologize but in this moment they entered the MedBay and Nemon welcomed her with a smile.                                                                                                                                                                                                    
    “Good morning! You had to be quite exhausted if you didn’t even hear the Chronometer. It’s alright, don’t worry.“ the Ilenian added when she was already taking a breath for an apology. “I had wanted to wait either way until Feorn got here so you can learn how to analyze various blood-samples. He is quite in arrears with his routine check-ups.” A chiding glare out of all four eyes made the Djelb shrivel.                                                                                                                               

    “Sorry, doc. You know me; scared of them needles.” But the waggishness was once again written over his face. Nemon clucked his tongue and Feorn obediently sank down on one of the biers.

Jenna suddenly realized that he was still not wearing one of the black suits like Nemon and the other crew members. In fact, he wasn’t wearing any clothes at all! She wasn’t sure what to think of that or if she should even address it, since Nemon didn’t seem put off by it.

The doc took a cannula and showed her how to find a Delb’s veins. As her small fingers hesitantly felt over the soft skin of his arm’s side he giggled.

“Now don’t be shy, I’m awfully ticklish.” Feorn commented and she felt the blood rushing into her cheeks. This guy really was the limit!                                                                                                                                                                                      

When she had successfully found the vein she took a step back to let Nemon set the needle; Feorn steadied himself on his free arm to eye her some more.                                                                                                                                       

“So; you haven’t told me where you’re from yet… Lemme guess: Planet  _Cute_ , right?” his eyes gleamed challenging, he clearly wanted to drive her mad!

Jenna was so taken aback that she couldn’t even huff an angry snort and just stared at him.

Feorn snickered. “Aww come on, I’m just messing around. No, seriously, where you from?”

At first she didn’t want to answer that but then did anyways:                                                                          

    “Planet E-Z127. We call it Earth, home of the human race which is still living completely unaware of the fact that their world is going to be destroyed soon. They don’t even know that there’s life in space beside them. I am the only one who ever got beyond the orbit of our moon and the way things are right now, I ever will be.” She gave back and handed Nemon another needle. Now the Djelb looked to the floor genuinely shamefaced.                                                      

    “I’m sorry… I had no idea…” She waved him off.

    “Oh, it’s alright. I just hope my family and friends don’t end up in slavery but rather die quickly.” she interrupted him cold. Nemon put a hand on her shoulder, squeezing it slightly.

    “Don’t say something like that. Maybe you can even try to save them if you swear the oath and take service with the Resistance.” The Ilenian said softly and her head jerked around.

    “What? What do you mean?!” she breathed stunned and Feorn nodded affirming.

    “It’s a form of blood-oath. You swear allegiance to the Resistance and prove it to them by destroying an Irken ship or killing a high ranked officer of the armada, something like that. In return the Resistance is indebted to you, depending on what you’ve accomplished. You could even ask the Commander to turn this boat around and save your family and friends.” he explained. “I myself am in their service, yet I never ask for anything in return.”

Despite her excitement she got curious at that.

    “And exactly how do you serve the Resistance? I mean, besides sabotaging Irken Recon-Spacerunners and blowing yourself up?” she asked, and made a mental note to immediately swear this oath as soon as she was completely healed. The Djelb grimaced when Nemon pulled the needle out his arm, closing the wound at once with a laser.

    “Ah… I’ll tell you some time… but only if you tell me whether you got a  _boyfriend_ or not.”

He didn’t see how Jenna’s jaw just dropped because Nemon smacked the back of his head.

   
  


After the Ilenian had literally thrown Feorn out of the MedBay he continued teaching Jenna everything she had to know in order to be able helping out in the lab and the station. He started off by presenting her the different machines used for analyzing the various types of bloods. Although she tried her hardest to memorize all of it at one go she ended up asking Nemon if she could get something to take notes. He was lenient with her and sent her off with an amused chuckle.

Jenna ran back to her quarter; luckily her suit was supporting her knee so well that it didn’t even hurt sprinting like that. Though she was hoping strongly that she would be able to take it off soon. It tended to get warm in this thing.

Wrapped up in thoughts like that she took the corner to her quarter’s hallway too quickly and promptly bumped into somebody. She all but went down as a strong hand closed around her arm and caught her.

    “Woah, slow down tiny. You’re going to run someone over. The Captain for example.”

She looked up and immediately frowned.

    “Feorn? What are you  _doing_ here?” she asked quite startled. The Djelb raised a brow and nodded towards the door across from her quarter.                                                                                                                                                       

    “That’s  _my_  room right there, so I either came out of it just now or wanted to get back in, one or the other.” He pulled her up and tilted his head to the side, his ears turned towards her like those of an attentive deer with sharp poison fangs. “Do you think I’m  _following_ you?” he asked, chortling amused. Jenna took a step back.

    “As if...” she spat what made him roll his eyes which looked really weird without pupils.

    “Yeah alright… know what? You better tell me now that you don’t like me. Then I could at least stop acting so damn friendly!” he snapped back icy.                                                                                                                                          

Now that hit home.

Jenna swallowed hard and looked away, her tense shoulders slouched. The Djelb waited another second for an answer, then he snorted scornfully and walked past her.

    “I don’t.”

Although she only whispered it Feorn stopped.

    “Is that so.” He said with a snarl but before he could leave she cleared her throat, trying to push the lump down that was about to choke her.

    “Y- you asked if I had a  _boyfriend;_ I don't. Well… I  _had_  one, on Earth. We actually got together right before I was abducted. He must believe I’m dead by now, the Irken pierced me with a spider leg right before his eyes. He actually wanted to kill Daniel and I threw myself between them to save him.” She was cautious to leave out the fact that she had made her promise to Set at that time. Feorn still wasn’t storming off so she kept talking. “I- I don’t  _know_  why I’m so cold towards you and always  _snapping_  at you but… I- maybe it’s just because… you remind me of him! And it hurts. A lot!” surprised she realized that this was actually the case. Feorn  _did_  remind her of Daniel with his jokes and being a happy-go-lucky guy, and it  _did_  hurt being constantly reminded of what she’d lost!

Jenna had closed her eye, her arms wrapped around her chest and Feorn still didn’t say a word. Bit by bit the silence grew awkward and then she suddenly felt a hand on her shoulder. Involuntarily she flinched at the touch, slowly opening her eye. Feorn was around 6’’5 tall so she could only see his blue chest and the shimmering green costal arches heaving gently. He somehow had moved around her without  a sound.

    “I’m sorry… I’m an idiot. I’m not that familiar with humans, otherwise I would have realized something about me was grieving you… If it’s that bad I’ll stay away from you from now on…” – “No!” she called out almost appalled and raised her head. Feorn looked equally surprised and confused.

Quickly she cast her gaze to the floor again.

    “I mean… you don’t  _have_ to…” she stuttered, embarrassed by her stormy reaction. She heard him chuckle.

    “Okay… I get it. You need a clown to cheer you up, well thanks.” But he laughed and she had to smile herself. The hand on her shoulder vanished and now she could look at him again without feeling the urge to run away. While she was reminded of Daniel she also felt anxious and a sting of guilt towards Set. It was enough to drive her mad.

“Hey, you asked me what I do.” Feorn interrupted her thoughts and she looked at him confused. “For the rebels.” He added and bent down to her. “Well, I prefer to act in secrecy although I sometimes fancy a dramatic performance. Also I’m a really skilled Fighter-pilot if I do say so myself.” He whispered conspiratorial. Jenna raised a brow.

    “And… that makes you a what now?” she scoffed and he smiled. But this smile was different from the usual, impish grin. This smile was cold and grim. It was a proud, a knowing smile. Her heart skipped a beat when he came close to her ear that she could hear his fangs click as he spoke.

    “I’m an assassin, a cold-blooded killer. They call me the ‘Dead Star’ from one end of the galaxy to the other.” The alien reverberation of his voice sent a shiver down her spine and she recoiled but he gently held her in place. Feorn’s eyes were piercing.

“If you want the bastard dead who did this to you, tell me. All I need is a name. Then it’s as good as done.” His stare turned even more intense and he waited for an answer.

But Jenna had to look away. Her blood was rushing in her ears and her heart seemed to have stopped for a couple of seconds for it was now hammering frantically against her ribs. For a moment, a split second, she wanted to give him the name. But she… couldn’t. Jenna wanted, oh god, how she wanted; but something kept her from spilling it, Why? Why couldn’t she just kill the monster? She wouldn’t even have to do it herself and then everything would be over and she could even save the whole human race!

But Set had trusted her. He might not had loved her but at least felt enough to rebel against his Code for her, to save her and to escape.

And now she knew why she didn’t tell Nemon the truth and why she now couldn’t give Feorn the name even though it was just one syllable: She had still hope. She had still hope that Set would be able to change.

    “I- I can’t, sorry.” She uttered hoarse. Feorn suspiciously narrowed his eyes.

    “What the hell is that-“ – “I want to do it myself.” She added quietly but with steady voice. And it was the truth. If Set wouldn’t be able to change and all her hope was used up then she wanted to kill him. He was  _her_  monster.

The Djelb widened his eyes in bafflement and finally nodded,

    “Okay… okay, I respect that.” He straightened himself again and looked at her with a thoughtful glance. But then his normal, cheerful grin returned. “Say… don’t you have to go back to Nemon?”

Jenna flinched.

    “Augh, shit!” quickly she opened her door and searched for her sketchbook and a pen. Feorn followed her uninvited and curiously inspected her stuff. Then he found the sketchbook lying on the bed.

    “What’s that?” he asked intrigued and Jenna all but screamed but it was too late. The Djelb opened the book and snapped his eyes open. She would have appreciated if the floor just swallowed her up; he must have had found the sketch of Set.

“Wow, that looks… did you do that?” he turned the book around to her. It was a dragon in flight she had drawn. Out of sincere relief she could only nod and didn’t move. Feorn perked up his ears amazed and examined the sketch. “What  _is_  that?”

    “It’s a… a dragon. On Earth they were just mythical creatures, so, not real; despite that everyone liked them.” Before she could snatch the sketchbook from him he flipped through it.

But even when he arrived at the last picture he didn’t show the reaction she was afraid of. Confused she took the book he handed her.

    “That’s amazing! How do you do that?” he seemed downright enthralled. With a perusing glance towards him she thumbed through the pages herself. The picture of Set had been ripped out, she spotted the little shreds. Had the Irk taken it? When? Probably when she was lying in the MedBay back on the  _Massive_.

    “Well, I… draw. Wait…” lost in thoughts she took the pen, sat down on the bed and opened an empty page. Feorn sat down next to her, staying completely still as she started to draw the contours of his face with hesitant strokes. Casting a few side glances to him she drew the big eyes with the two bone arches stretching from his brows over the crest of his head to the back. The three feelers on both sides of his head and the big, deer-like ears behind his protruding cheek bones.

Feorn made an impressed sound when she was done with the quick sketch. Then he grinned.           

    “Can I have that?” he asked excited and she tugged the page out.

    “Sure… question: You’re actually breathing through these things, right?” she pointed at the gills at the side of his torso. Perplexed he looked down his body and snorted with laughter.

    “I’m not sure what you’re getting at here but yeah, I do.”

She rolled her eye and pointed at the narrow openings that looked like nostrils.

    “Then what are those for? Smell?” she asked confused. He was still giggling and shook his head.

    “No, but close enough. I smell more with my tongue. Those right here,” he brushed over the pits, “are for a different sense. I can see the warmth of living beings with them. Being an assassin that’s kinda handy, I can tell from a pretty long distance where my target is and which spots are the most vulnerable.” He explained with a smug grin.

Jenna eyed her body.

    “So you could tell me right now where you would slice me open the easiest way?” she commented arid and he cocked a brow.

    “What gives you the idea I’d use a knife out of all things? I could also shoot you.” He riposted but now it was her turn to grin in triumph.

    “Oh come on, I saw what you did with that  _scalpel_ , so don’t play the innocent.” She snorted and he looked down found guilty.

    “Not bad, human. Alright.” He closed his eyes and raised a hand. Slowly he let it float over her body and then touched her throat, right over her carotid artery. He grinned. “I can  _see_  your heartbeat… the skin is very thin there and multiple big blood vessels run right under it. This is where I’d get you most likely… although…” he let his hand sink to her armpit, aiming for her axillary artery which was another big blood vessel and Jenna felt a little uncomfortable having these critical spots revealed so easily. After all she was this close to a killer who could just end her by biting her.

“You’re vulnerable here as well. Your skin is very thin in general; I can actually see  _more_ than just weak spots. Spots that seem to be more  _sensitive_ than others.”

When she looked at him confused Feorn opened his eyes and gave her a crooked grin. Even before she could feel the blood boiling in her face he started laughing. Jenna stood up hastily and grabbed her stuff.

    “I- I should really get back to Nemon!” she said resolute even though her heart was racing. The Djelb followed her snickering and waited until she had closed the door.

    “That was… nice. Welp, you know where to find me in case you got more questions concerning my…  _anatomy_. See ya!” he waved her goodbye although she was already running down the hallway.

 

Nemon apparently had a sixth sense besides his hypersensitive hands because he only shook his head and chuckled to himself when Jenna arrived crimson-faced.

    “Feorn, I assume?” he stated and she could hear the amused pity in his voice.

    “Yeah…” she growled and tied her hair back. Nemon already pointed at one of the machines and quizzed her about the controls, asking her what the signs said to make sure the Vortian language was solidifying. She could read everything, but some of the terms and especially the short forms didn’t tell her anything. Nemon started explaining the functionality of the machine and she whipped her pen out. Class had started.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm tired and mopey :C I need chocolate


	34. Truth

### -17 – Truth

 

_6 hours later – Rebellion – 11 days 7 hours since abduction_

 

When Jenna was finally able to completely analyze her own blood without making any mistake Nemon patted her on the shoulder contented and gave her the rest of the cycle off. Jenna checked her Chronometer on the way back to her room. It was late afternoon already and she was famished!

Quickly she brought the sketchbook back to her quarters and felt relief when she didn’t run into Feorn again; simply because the thought of having another conversation like the one before made her panic a little. She actually felt like seeking someone to talk to but the Djelb seemed a bit too extreme a company for now.

So she headed to the mess hall to get something to eat. Luckily the food even looked like it was edible. Apart from that she still had no clue whatsoever what it actually was but it smelled good and she could see that it was something like meat.

Two of Nemon’s assistants were having dinner as well, a Vortian and an Ilenian who looked a little heavyset for his species. Jenna was used to the lanky Nemon and Set in his Ilenian disguise, who had been muscular but still slender so she was a bit surprised when she now eyed the guy. The Vortian had a pinched mouth and was scrutinizing her already, but Jenna had planned to get to know more people on this ship so she took the place across from them. At first the two remained silent, exchanging glances. Then the Vortian rolled his eyes and boxed the Ilenian in the side. He flinched and met Jenna’s look somewhat sheepishly.

    “Err… I-  _we_  wanted to apologize for yesterday. We should have warned you about Feorn, he pulls these pranks every time there’s a new face among the assistants. Sorry we laughed at you.” He said contrite and the Vortian nodded quickly although he didn’t seemed to be sorry at all.

The human smiled generously.

    “It’s alright, I admit that must’ve looked pretty funny.” She replied with a soft smile and the Ilenian relaxed visibly.

“Ah… do you guys have any idea what I’m eating?” she asked nervously and they all laughed.

The Ilenian was Reliat and the Vortian, a female one actually, was Car. They confessed that they had no idea what the food on her plate was but that just started the conversation.

As it turned out, the two were a couple. Car was obviously the one wearing the britches but Reliat was chattier. He asked her a lot, about her home planet, how she managed to escape the Irken; but the whole time he seemed to be avoiding a specific question preying on his mind.

    “I’m a bit anxious to ask this but… I mean, it was all over the long-range networks! They said you are the one who fought the Butcher and won!” he was both avid and aghast as he blurted out.

Jenna dropped the fork as the memory rushed her. To be honest it wasn’t a real memory, more like fractures.

The things she remembered were the moments when she’d lost control over the scary power the Pakrit had awoken in her. So, the most painful ones.

She felt her right eye itch under the patch and burn when she had to think of how the Butcher slowly pierced it with the spider leg. Her heart pounded painfully and she involuntarily breathed shallow; her whole body reacted viciously to the vivid images. As she remembered all the blood, the stench, the noise from the shouting crowd she felt dizzy and the sounds of the mess hall turned into a muffled static filling her ears and her entire head.

Suddenly a touch jerked her from her panic attack. Her vision cleared and she saw Car who had leaned across the table to put a hand on her arm.

    “Easy. Nothing will happen to you, you’re safe. Sorry, we shouldn’t have asked.” The Vortian apologized and Reliat looked like he was about to throw up from feeling so uncomfortable with the situation. Jenna struggled for air and nodded slowly; drops of sweat had formed on her forehead and her hands were tensed up into claws.

    “It- it’s okay… I’m fine.” She muttered and looked at her meal. At least she had eaten most of it this time before losing her appetite again. She had to stop talking to people over her meals if she ever wanted to get sated! Relieved she stroked her hair back and cautionary felt for the eye patch’s clamps. It was still there, it was over.

“Yes, I did win, otherwise I wouldn’t sit here. But I can’t remember anything.” She added and Car shot her a doubtful glance. Jenna sighed and settled more comfortable on the metal bench.

“Did you hear about the second fight? The one against the two Vorn?” she asked and Reliat nodded.

    “It wasn’t a real hype like the Butcher but some Irken uploaded videos to the networks. It looked so gruesome! So different from the usual fights. That silence was scary!”

Now she cast the Ilenian a crushing glare.

    “Do you watch such revolting videos on a daily basis?” she hissed disgusted.

The two of them lowered their gazes abashed. But Car immediately looked her into the eyes again, a similar harshness burning in them.

    “Yes, I do. Because I still have friends out there and I want to know whether they’re alive or not!” she defended herself and now it was up to Jenna to look guilty. After an awkward silence she continued.

    “Yes, the fight was hard. In fact it was so hard that I was supposed to get thrown before the Butcher unconscious, that’s how bad I was wounded. But I was saved. By an Irken.” She had expected their appalled stares why she smiled sad. “She wasn’t a regular Irken though. Ria had managed to free herself from the Codes that force the Irken into strict behavioral patterns. She could feel like you and I. She was punished for that by the Tallest, but she was free. To be honest it was because of her that I was thrown into the arena, I attacked one of the Tallest when they tortured her before my eyes – it’s true, don’t look at me like that. After the guards had brought me back from the second fight she ripped off her Pak and made me drink the liquid inside while she was dying in agony. She died so I could live on.”

Jenna carved little symbols into the table with her knife while she tried to remember what had happened afterwards. “The Pakrit… it healed me… even more; I was stronger… faster and… I could suddenly do  _things_ … I can barely remember anything. The next thing I know is that S-“ she stopped mid-sentence and had to remind herself to keep certain details to herself. “That  _somehow_ I had ended up in the MedBay of the  _Massive_. The Irken who abducted me eventually made sure I got this.” She pointed at her eye patch.

Reliat nodded aghast.

    “I was there when Nemon inspected your wounds. If the Pakrit had really healed you and you were still this severely injured… I can’t imagine what you must’ve gone through.” Even the withdrawn Car gave her a sympathetic look. But Jenna didn’t want to think about all the horrors that would haunt her anyway for the rest of her life.

    “That’s why I’m so happy to be here. I don’t even know how long I’m away from home now or how far… it feels like I haven’t had a normal conversation for months. Well, this one’s not normal either.” She added laughing.

Reliat and Car took their leave, they had the late shift in the MedBay.

“Hey, do you know where I can find Feorn?” she asked and Car grinned at her.

    “Oh, he’s probably in the hangar, repairing his jet. He’s practically married to that thing.”

Jenna waved them goodbye and felt relaxed enough to pay the killer with the permanent grin a visit and looked for the hangar on her Chronometer.

She found it without any bigger problems and gaped at the fighter fleet that looked very close to jets on Earth. Swiftly she wound through the busy aliens until she spotted a bright blue back standing out of the crowd of black suited people. Feorn stood before a shining jet that was painted black with green and blue stripes on the wings, tinkering with the engines.

Following a sudden notion she ducked and snuck up behind him, careful not to be seen in the reflecting surface of the fighter. With her heart beating from agitation she reached out… and caught thin air. Before she could blink confused strong hands grabbed her shoulders and delicate barbels were tickling the part of her hair.

    “You’re too loud. And too hectic. I already noticed you when you bumped against that landing gear back there. But it’s nice of you to come visit me.” The Djelb greeted her with his usual snickering. On her first instinct Jenna wanted to brush off his hands but after her lunch she was too lazy and just decided to lean against his body. Apparently Feorn hadn’t expected that in the least since he took a surprised step back and let go off her. At her startled shout he caught her however. Now Jenna clung to his arms and looked up to him.

    “Oh my god, you can’t just bail like that!” she complained laughing and only laughed louder when she saw his stunned expression. To change the subject she got up on her feet and nodded towards the fighter. “So, you gonna take me for a flight some time? That would make up for the prank you know.” She asked and felt the laughter vibrating in his chest.

    “Sure, if you wanna. I just hope you don’t get sick so fast.” He added quickly and she grinned.        

    “Oh, don’t worry, I know better than to puke into the Dead Star’s cockpit.” She reassured the Djelb scornfully. As soon as she said it she felt the hands around her arms tense up.

    “Please don’t call me that. I’m… not really  _proud_ of this name.” Feorn mumbled strained. Now Jenna left his embrace after all and turned around.

    “Why not? You seemed pretty proud when you told me about it. Why the sudden shyness?” she asked curious. He was stuck on an answer, just peered over her head into the void. Jenna was about to change the subject again when he suddenly grabbed her around the waist and picked her up like it was nothing.

“H-hey, what…”

Feorn placed her gently on the jet's wing and simply jumped on it himself. With one hand he opened the canopy, with the other one he helped her get up. Before he actually got in the Djelb pulled a suit from the seat and put it on with a little bit of struggling. Then he sank on the pilot seat and patted his thigh.

    “Sorry, no twoseater.” He apologized when she cocked a brow. “Why the sudden shyness? I'll tell you why I hate my nickname.” Feorn added with a roguish grin.

The human let her crossed arms drop with a sigh and set a foot into the cockpit. If there was one thing she’d call a weakness it was her damn curiosity. And he seemed to sense that.

“Make yourself comfy, I’m not really squeamish.” He twitted her when she hesitantly sat down on his lap. Jenna bopped him into the side but he just giggled and pushed a few buttons and levers. The hatch closed with a hiss and beneath them the fighter came to life with a quiet buzzing.

    “Fighter A-341, clearance for take off granted. Where ya off to, Feorn?” a voice hummed through the speakers and the Djelb grinned.

    “Impressing a fair lady.” He answered and Jenna stuck out her tongue.

    “Oooh,  _okay_  then, have fun! In case ya wanna know: we’re currently not far from a gas giant. Just sayin’, if ya  _really_  wanna impress her.”

Now Feorn couldn’t keep a laugh.

    “Alright, man, thanks for the tip.” With a jerk the fighter took off the ground and Jenna clung to him startled. “Don’t be afraid. Nothing will ever happen to you in here.” He calmed her softly and draped his wrist casually over the controller. Jenna had expected a holographic control system but the fact that Feorn had the jet literally in his hand soothed her.

Slowly the fighter turned around on the spot and floated towards a second, smaller hangar that was completely empty and encased in a see-through material. As soon as they were inside a hatch closed behind them and a siren shrilled, followed by a computer voice:

    “Launch sequence… clear.”

Underneath the fighter a trap door opened and Feorn let the jet drop like a stone into the dark void. Jenna gasped for air and clutched to his chest even though the insane acceleration was practically pressing her into him. He put his free arm around her to reach another button at the side of the dashboard.

Two additional sets of engines hidden inside the wings fired up and the jet slowly came into a horizontal position again. She looked around and opened her mouth in awe. This was nothing compared to Set’s ship or the  _Massive._  She felt tiny and lost among this infinite void with nothing as a point of orientation, even the stars where more confusing than helpful. Then Feorn made a turn and she saw the giant gas planet; blue and shining brightly in the darkness. Now that she had something to orientate herself she finally loosened her cramped arms around Feorn’s middle. He took a relieved breath what made her look at him in confusion. He grinned.

    “You were kinda choking me right now.” He commented and she blinked in start. “Never mind; you’re pretty strong! I’m surprised.” He admitted and Jenna smiled crookedly.

    “Well… I had enough opportunities to train… not that I wanted to but it did save my life.”

Feorn didn’t say anything while he piloted the jet towards the gas giant and just listened. She touched the glass of the canopy. “I am the  _first_ human ever out here… I suppose I should write down everything I see and experience to tell my people about it. But to be honest, I just want to tell them: get away! Try to leave the Earth behind and survive. The armada will eviscerate you if you stay. But the most depressing is… they wouldn’t believe me… I’d just be another one of those UFO- lunatics. They would only believe me if the  _Massive_  was floating right above the White House… those goddamn idiots.”

    “My people trusted our politicians to negotiate with the Irken. We entrusted our lives to them.  Truth is they only brokered a deal for their own safe conduct and sold the rest of us to the Tallest. We were completely unprepared when the armada attacked. I don’t know how many of us survived but it weren’t many. Those who were able to escape are in hiding among the species of far away planets.” he said quietly and allaying. 

Jenna shot him an asking glance.

    “How are they doing that without attracting attention?” From her first-hand experiences she knew that aliens weren’t exactly fond of weird, unknown aliens suddenly appearing in their midst.

Feorn eyed her concentrated and something happened with his face. The contours became blurred, shifted and came to a halt again. She had to blink and realized only then that she was looking at a blue-skinned human. Beside his alien color he had ears that were just a little too big and the nose wasn’t right but it was the most human-like creature she’d seen in a long time and she unknowingly held her breath. The human smiled and took on his true appearance again.

    “It’s really hard to keep such a disguise up for longer, especially when it’s such a complexly built species like yours with so many details…” he said absent-minded and she turned around a bit more.

    “What kind of creatures  _are_ you Djelb actually? If I had to take you for an example I’d say you are overly goofy and kind of  _obtrusive_ blue catfish.” The second they were out she regretted her words and blushed but Feorn started laughing with all his heart.

    “Oh Swamps no, please don’t judge my entire race by my poor standards! I’m a horrible example for my kind.” He was still giggling, tears gathered in the corners of his eyes. “If all Djelb were like me we would’ve been wiped out by probably every other species long ago. He touched a few levers before turning back to her and scratching his ear thoughtfully. “Well… we have always been a more…  _acting_ people. Politics only became a topic when we pressed forward into space and met the other races. Djelb don’t like being led by a few chosen ones; the people should rule as one, one tribe. But the other races wouldn’t accept us as a friendly species without a representative, an official chief, in the galactic council. The average Djelb is rather distrusting, withdrawn and doesn’t talk much. So exactly the opposite of me. Among each other we communicate more through body language and signals of our skin, kinda like this:”

He looked at her again and suddenly dark blue spots darted from his forehead over his nose towards his mouth, like the pigments of a squid. She smiled amazed. “Hunting was the custom for a long time even after our civilization became a member of the galactic council. Over our skin we could send messages to the other hunters easily. Some priests even had the power to paralyze animals with holy symbols and patterns or to attract them. To come back to your original question: We’re shape shifters. Not only regarding out skin or appearance, but our gender as well.”

No Jenna stumbled and pointed at him confused with open mouth.

    “Hold on… you mean you can change your  _gender_? Like,  _physically_ even? How!? And, is there a special time you can do this or does it work”, she snapped her fingers, “like that?”

He grinned widely.

    “How’d you like me more? As a man?” Suddenly something different happened. The layer of golden scales shielding his throat turned a pale green. The barbels on his chin and head shortened and his eyes grew bigger and darker until they were a deep red. It seemed Feorn even shrunk a bit.

“Or rather as a woman?”

Jenna held her breath. The Djelb tilted his- or better her- head to the side and grinned; clearly Feorn, only female. Even his voice had changed, it was brighter and the subharmonic seemed to echo more than usually. It was stunning.

    “Err.. I…” she stuttered self-conscious and Feorn laughed out. Luckily he changed back again.

    “Aw man, that never gets old! I can’t describe how hilarious it is when a dude hits on you not knowing Djelb can change their gender and then I turn around smiling at him as a guy. But don’t worry, I prefer being male, even though I sometimes change my gender when a job is easier to execute being a woman. Besides,  _male_ Djelb are considered to be quite handsome.” He added and shot her a checking side glance.

    “Yeah, sure you are.” Her scoffing tone made him laugh again.

    “I’m glad you’re warming up a little. I think you’re very interesting and I would have honestly been devastated if you actually didn’t like me.” He confessed quietly but sensed how she tensed up again and looked at the gas giant. “And I hope you’ll trust me some day.”

The jet entered the gas giant’s gravitation field and what happened as they came closer made Jenna hold her breath again. The heat of the fighter entering the atmosphere made the gas particles glow and sent out energy rays into every direction. Like lightning bolts of all colors the particles dashed around them. Feorn steered the fighter lower and deactivated the hover-engines. Then he took her hand and put it on the cyclic stick.

When Jenna looked at him surprised and a tad nervous he just smiled. “Don’t be scared, it’s actually pretty easy; I’ll take care of the rest… for today.” He calmed her and she felt a grin creeping up on her face as she made the jet describe a hesitant curve. She could sense the motion beneath her and attentively listened to every sound the machines made. Feorn encouraged her and finally she took a deep breath and pulled the cyclic towards her body. The jet shot straight up and started to tilt backwards. In the loop she saw a train of glowing particles like a shimmering rainbow following them.   
  
A cheer broke from her and Feorn joined in, placing his hand over hers and in the next seconds he performed so many acrobatic maneuvers that he would’ve easily swept the board at every flying contest. Within a few heartbeats the jet transformed into a flash of light, doing barrel rolls, twisting and spinning through the atmosphere in a wild dance. and although their speed was ridiculous Jenna never felt a swing of fear, only pure joy and freedom.

Way too early Feorn veered to return to the  _Rebellion_. Jenna now knew why he had put on the suit that looked so weird on him; despite the heat the Jet produced and emitted into the cockpit it had become pretty cold. She let herself sink back against the Djelb to at least get   
  
a bit of warmth and he put his arm around her, piloting the jet lazily with one hand.

    “You still haven’t told me yet why you don’t like your name.” she mumbled, shifting a bit on his lap to get a better look at him. Feorn laughed quietly.

    “Ah… it must’ve gotten off my mind. Shall we continue this on a second  _date_?” he leered at her, waggling his ears and Jenna averted his gaze.

    “Feorn…” she began reserved, huffing, but he already sighed and put her off.

    “Alright, alright, I shut up. I didn’t want to abash you. Well, I did, but not like  _this_.” He gave in and busied himself with the cockpit’s instruments. Jenna brushed her hair back and looked out of the jet to watch the stars.

Actually she kind of wanted to have Feorn around her, for the fact alone that she wouldn’t be so lonely anymore and to keep her mind off of Set. But every time the Djelb would make an approach she couldn’t help the feeling of guilt and anxiety clawing at her heart. She feared for Feorn’s sake. Set would have had torn Daniel to pieces without hesitation and he would shoot the Djelb down in flames if he were to get as much as a whiff of a suspicion.

On the other hand the Irken was too far away to catch up to the  _Rebellion_  and alone he would never make it through the swarm of fighter jets, let alone the ship’s crew. So why shouldn’t she give Feorn a go?

But maybe it was the fear of possible pain or other  _unpleasant_  incidents. The fear of getting hurt and abused again. Yet she was sure Feorn would never hit her or bit and choke her…

Involuntarily she shook her head. It was silly. Still, she would wait a while longer before deciding.  
  
  
  
  
Car and Reliat

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Jenna's gonna become a fighter pilot and get to the Tallest like fight me you shits and Feorn will be her sweet princess, ayyy
> 
> don't look at me I'm sleep deprived and not sufficiently caffeinated halp


	35. Truth - Pt. 2

### -17 – Truth

#### Part 2

  
Back at the  _Rebellion_ ’s hangar Feorn let her land the jet, what was much more difficult than Jenna had expected but somehow she managed to make the fighter touch down relatively gently and without squishing anybody. The Djelb opened the canopy laughing and jumped out of the cockpit. The human followed him a lot less smooth and allowed him to lift her off the wing; she was laughing as well and her eyes were still shining with joy.

As they turned around Tork was standing behind them tilting his head with a grumpy look. Feorn saluted sharply and Jenna wanted to follow suit but the Vortian shook his head, now grinning and put them off.

    “At ease you  _nutjob_. It’s good to have you back with us, Feorn. Nemon told me what happened to you but I didn’t get the chance to see you any sooner, my apologies. According to your reports, especially the description of the Irken Recon-Spacerunner, you actually managed to run into the invader from whom we got our human here. Had I known you might cross his path I would have warned you in advance…” The Commander went silent when the Djelb shot around, staring at Jenna in disbelief.

She turned pale in an instant and knew she had fucked up  _big time_. Upon her guilt-ridden expression Feorn’s look turned hateful, his lips parting in a snarl.

    “You lied to me…” he muttered and she reached out for him but he quickly stepped back.

    “Feorn, I’m sorry, I just…” she tried to explain but he turned on his heel and stormed out of the hangar. Cut up and anxious Jenna could only wrap her arms around her body and choke a curse. Tork just shot her a confused glance but even he had taken a step back.

    “Well, I don’t know what happened between the two of you… and I sure as heck don’t want to know. But you should reason this out, I don’t tolerate fights or mistrusting on this ship. The Resistance is a unity and we’d like to keep it that way.” The Vortian grumbled and scrutinized her warily before he went off as well. Jenna was left behind, unable to move. Her thoughts were a mess; the longer she stood there the more she realized what this revelation of her lie actually meant for her.

Not only had she lied to Feorn but to Nemon of all people! Feorn would tell him… he’d probably tell everybody and then she was  _really_  screwed. The crew members would avoid her thinking she was cooperating with the Irken and had only been a bait, a spy, to infiltrate their ranks and find out about their home base and their ship’s flaws… to sum it up she would get hunted again, just like on the camping-planet.

 

Half an hour later the doors to the MedBay slid open and she scuffled into the lab. She had taken off her suit, anxious the Irken design might make her look even more like a criminal than she already felt like; now she was hobbling without the suit supporting her still not fully healed knee.

Nemon, who was still sitting behind his desk at this late hour, looked up and smiled noticing her. But when he took a closer look at her face he quickly rose from his chair and approached her.

    “Jenna? What’s wrong?” he asked concerned and the woman burst into tears. Bewildered of the unexpected breakdown the Ilenian didn’t know what to do at first. But then he caught himself and put his hands on her shoulders to calm her and to feel for her neck. The human was panicked and in complete turmoil, but she didn’t seem to feel physical pain so she wasn’t actually hurt.

Gently he moved her over to a stretcher and sat down on the one across from her, patiently waiting for her to catch her breath. After a few minutes she finally stopped sobbing and just sniffled quietly.

    “I- I… oh god, Nemon I am so sorry… I lied to you. The Invader who attacked Feorn… he was the one who abducted me. I just didn’t tell you the truth because- ‘cause… augh,  _fuck_ , I don’t even know  _why_! I don’t know why I tried to hide this monster! He took everything from me,  _everything_! He abused me, tortured me, used my family to make me obey!”

Her blowup didn’t make Nemon recoil, he had expected a reaction like this, even though it happened a bit late now. Jenna stared at her hands.

“And suddenly… he was everything I had left… the only one who kept me from going insane was the monster holding me captive… he… he seemed to change the more days went by. He was less brutal, started to trust me.” Now she was finally able to look him in the eyes. Her own were begging forgiveness, she felt like a traitor, someone who had done a horrible thing, when she breathed: “He saved my life back then. On the  _Massive_. And I… I was so  _relieved_  and happy to see him… I thought he had changed through me. But after a few hours he was once again the completely obedient dog… and I only his hostage. Nemon… what was I supposed to do? Was there something I could’ve done differently about my situation?” she asked under her breath, a cautious whisper, though as if the question alone was prove to her perverted backstory and she expected him to tell her she should’ve killed herself.

The Ilenian perceived all of that and he was shocked. He had already guessed that Jenna must’ve received a severe psychological trauma from all her suffering; but seeing her this churned up inside and clearly mentally violated upon the point of inner destruction and self-loathing made him mad with fury and guilt. Guilt, that he hadn’t realized sooner just how much devastation had been caused under this hard shell of hers. Apparently the Invader was an even more vicious character than he had thought. But had it merely been Jenna’s trauma that made her think the Irken was changing? Or was there actually something to it?

He shook his head, all of that was secondary for now; at first he’d have to make sure the human would calm down and feel safe and sound again, or the damage would only grow. Gently Nemon enclosed her hands in his and waited until she lifted her gaze again.

    “Jenna, I want you to listen closely: You don’t bear  _any_  blame for  _anything_  that happened. It was just instinctive of you to hold onto the only living being around you, everything else left aside. This saved you from dying of your pain, isolation and desperation, and that’s the only thing that counts. Only through your own inner strength and your will to survive you are now  _here_ , alive, and you have the chance to save those who  _matter_  to you. Do you understand?” he watched her sternly and finally she nodded; it was the smallest of movements but he sensed how her heart rate lowered and her nerves settled. “Remember this: you did all of those things to survive. Some might say you should’ve killed the Irken at the next opportunity. But that is plain madness. How would you have survived all alone on an abandoned ship which you didn’t know the controls of. Let alone the SIR unit. You would have died out there. But you didn’t want that, did you? You wanted to  _survive_ , so you could save your planet.” He was talking poignantly and persuasive so that she nodded unknowingly.

Nemon sighed and got up to get something from the back part of the lab. It was a syringe.

“Always keep in mind: you’re save now. Nobody will harm you in any way or judge you for doing what was necessary to survive. After all many of us have secrets they don’t ever tell because they feel guilty and ashamed of them. And if they do try to harm you – well, not long ago I was a sniper in the battlefield. Here, that will help you rest.” He injected her with the substance in the syringe and she didn’t even flinch.

    “Thank you Nemon… I only wish I would have told you the truth sooner… at least Feorn wouldn’t hate me now.” she muttered and slipped off the bier, stumbling slightly as her knee gave way under her. The Ilenian silently shook his head. Feorn would calm himself, if need be he would adjust his brain personally, he thought when Jenna left the MedBay with slouched shoulders.

 

On the way to her quarter Jenna quickly hid her face every time she walked past someone. She didn’t want anyone to see her tears or even the guilt in her eyes. The broken soul hidden away behind them. Now she just wanted to go to sleep and die.

The bed cushioned her merciful and she buried herself under the blanket until not even a single hair stuck out. But sleep didn’t come, the gentle oblivion failed to lull her. Something wasn’t right.

Jenna held her breath and listened closely. She heard steps in front of her door and suddenly it opened. She tried to pick up anything else but the door closed again, yet she noticed a presence, someone was in here with her.

Paralyzed from fear she shut her eyes but couldn’t help the trembling running through her body. The other one didn’t stir. She wanted to scream, wanted to throw out whoever was standing there but she couldn’t find the strength. Suddenly she heard a silent snort, almost a sigh.

    “So, are you going to explain to me what’s all this about?” Feorn asked quietly and his voice sounded so cold that she curled up more and the tremble grew into a shaking. Even her teeth were chattering. She hated it.

“You know, I’d just like to understand why you did it. Why you lied to us. Where you afraid we’d sell you to the Irken ‘cause he’s such a big deal?” the Djelb spat out spiteful and a sob burst from her chest.

    “Go away… you already hate me anyway, so why can’t you just leave me alone? Get out!” she whined frantic. A jerk and Feorn had pulled the blanket away.

    “Shit… you really are a mess.” He hissed and that flipped a switch inside her. Jenna jumped to her feet and punched the Djelb, bending down over her, dead in the face. He hit the wall and placed a hand over his cheek surprised.

    “You have  _no idea_  what I’ve been through! You know nothing about me! You don’t know what it’s like to lose everything you had and what it means to cling to the only thing that’s alive even though it’s the one tormenting you! That bruises, torture and rape suddenly are the only thing you have left and you  _accept_  it, even  _enjoy_  it because it’s the only fucking attention you can get! And once there’s just the slightest hint of kindness and affection it’s like fucking heaven on Earth! And all of a sudden you realize you’ve been living in a surreal, nightmarish prison all this time and that you had stopped fighting it… what do you think would a person feel like after this?!” she screamed at the top of her lungs, her hand cutting the air in harsh gestures.

Then she just stared at him, breathing heavily. Feorn had stopped rubbing his cheek and could only return the stare with eyes widely opened in stun. Jenna gave a hard laugh, more like a dry sob. Now it was all out. Just like her rage. Left was only a dull emptiness, and the wish to lie down and die. She slumped onto the mattress and buried her face in her hands. Silent cries shook her shoulders. “You’re right… I am a complete mess…” she panted tired and tensed up noticing the new weight next to her on the bed.   
When two arms wrapped around her she fought them, pushed against his chest, kicked him and scratched his skin but that didn’t stop Feorn from pulling her closer until he could hug her. Jenna eventually stopped struggling and instead rested her head against his shoulder exhausted.

    “I am such an idiot… a complete, utter asshole… and I can’t even apologize to you because everything I’d say now would be pointless and couldn’t really make up for the things I already said. I just wish I could turn back time to shut me the hell up. I… I just thought you wanted to protect the invader who put you through this nightmare, but in reality you were just anxious somebody would find out about all the horrible things that happened to you. I- I’m sorry, I treated you like that; I got mad at you and it’s not even your fault to be honest. I don’t know if I can ever make up for that.” Feorn muttered hoarse and quickly let go of her when she tensed up again.

But this time it wasn’t because of his touch, it was because Jenna’s heart had skipped a beat just now. Feorn didn’t have any idea that he had actually seen right through her and her motive to protect Set from the rebels. But like hell she would tell him about that!

“Again, I’m sorry… and you better get used to hearing that from me all the time now.” Feorn sighed and tousled her hair. Jenna had to smile. At least he knew and accepted that he was in the wrong.

    “I wish I could’ve done some things differently myself. I should’ve went with the Prerk for one. They were actually really nice although they wanted to drink my blood.” she said quietly.

He looked down at her aghast.

    “You met Prerk? I thought they were all dead by now. That must’ve been a bad experience.”

Jenna shook her head.

    “Like I said, they were actually kinda friendly. Sure, one of them slashed my arm open but their leader offered me to go with them and leave the Irken to his demise. But I didn't do it... I guess Ria was right after all.” She added while settling somewhat more comfortable against Feorn, apparently Nemon’s syringe seemed to take effect now. “At that time I was already turned over… brainwashed…” she mumbled. The Djelb shook his head and kept holding her in his arms.

    “I don’t think so. You wouldn’t have escaped if you were really brainwashed. You’re much stronger than you think, in fact I barely know anybody who went through so much and took it only half as well as you.”

Then they went silent. Jenna listened to his calm breath that brushed gently over her arm.

    “Why do they call you the Dead Star?” she finally asked and Feorn sighed quietly.

    “I have been an assassin all my life. And even when the second invasion started I didn’t quit. There was already so much death and bloodshed in this galaxy caused by the Empire alone but I wouldn’t turn my back on my job and kept adding bodies to the pile like I didn’t give a shit. I know that sounds awful, and it is. I was a real scumbag back then and I didn’t care for anyone else besides myself which has something to do with my father, but that’s another story.” He said, giving her a crooked grin. “So, one day, I got the contract to kill a Vortian senator. I didn’t ask my client any questions, didn’t even see who he was and it was fine since most of my contracts worked this way. I didn’t like politicians all that much to begin with and finished the job swiftly.   
As it turned out my client was an Irken invader, stationed on Vort in disguise with the mission to conquer it. The senator I murdered was the key to Vort’s downfall because he was the only politician with enough power and money to prevent the Tallest from just marching in on Vort… I still don’t fully understand why. Right after his death the armada started a full scale invasion before I was even away far enough. I saw the invader who owed his victory to me. I will never forget his smug grin.”

Jenna noticed just now that she had held her breath and took a shaking gasp for air. Feorn was staring at the wall; with a deep frown he continued, his voice strained.

“After that I failed at every contract I took until I stopped completely and just wandered through the galaxy aimlessly. But everywhere I went people recognized me and immediately tried to kill me whenever they could. Guess whose doing that was. The invader had somehow found out about my identity and made me a wanted man throughout the systems.  When I learned about that I wasn’t aimless anymore. I looked for a way to eviscerate the invader who conned and humiliated me. And I got my chance… I found him on a snacking-planet. Killing him was so easy… I brought his corpse back to Vort to hang him on the highest tower, just under the Irken flag.  
Shortly after that I got an encrypted message. The Resistance, which was just starting to form and had another name back then, had tracked me down and wanted to make me answer for my crimes. Surprisingly enough I complied… at the time I already bore the name Dead Star, named after the devastation and blackout I had brought over Vort. I immediately put myself in the Resistance's service, without any claims or anything in return for my work. The Vortians never forgave what I did, but they give me credit for not doing it myself.” He laughed quietly but it was a tired laugh void of his usual waggishness.

Jenna reached out for him and hesitantly stroked over his cheek. The agonized expression relieved a bit but she could still see the grief in his eyes as he turned towards her. “I guess we both were tricked by the Irken without realizing it. That's probably the real reason I snapped at you... I can't cope with it when someone lies to me.” He mumbled and shot her an apologetic look. She nodded slightly. Despite Feorn’s sinister backstory she couldn’t help but feel pity for him. Maybe it was because he behaved so happy all of the time. With so much guilt inside of him it must be really hard to keep such a cheery grin all day long while looking at the people he had robbed of their home world.

Suddenly she carefully freed herself from his embrace and angled for her backpack. After a few second she pulled her iPod out of a side pocket and handed Feorn one of the earplugs. Confused he looked at it and twisted the plastic knob between his fingers.

“What’s that? Looks like a headset…” he pondered while she sat on the bed again next to him.

    “Almost. Do you like music?” she asked in turn and now the Djelb pricked up his long ears.

    “If we understand even  _roughly_ the same by music; heck yeah!”

The human put the earplug in her ear and he did the same, what made her laugh out in surprise as the tiny device disappeared inside the giant ear. It sounded more like a drunk giggle; whatever Nemon had put into the syringe, it must’ve been the good stuff. She chose a cheerful song, a bit of pop seemed the best choice right now to ease the gloomy mood. The first few beats didn’t appear to be anything new for Feorn but when the singing started he sat bolt-upright and even opened his mouth a bit. “Oh wow…” was all he managed to utter and just listened to these strange sounds fascinated. The feeler on his head swayed lightly to the beat. Jenna sang along quietly and blushed when she noticed his grin.

They talked for a little while, she told him about her former life on Earth and about Ria when he asked for her. She started crying as soon as she thought about her but Feorn just let her and only rubbed her shoulder gently until she caught herself.

After a while she grew so tired that she lay down on her side, resting her head on his thigh. Feorn kept brushing over her arm till he eventually sank down himself, shifting his arm under her nape. Jenna switched to a calmer playlist and snuggled up closer against the Djelb.

Soon they were both fast asleep; and neither of them had nightmares this night.         

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want to cuddle Feorn... somebody get me a blue catfish-deer alien Dx


	36. Live

### \- 18 – Live  
  


_8 hours later –_ Rebellion _– Jenna’s quarter – 12 days 6 hours after abduction_

 

When she woke up Feorn wasn’t there anymore. But the warmth next to her could only mean that he wasn’t gone for long. Yet when the door to her bathroom opened she realized the Djelb hadn’t took to his heels at all. A bit sheepishly she smiled at him, remembering everything that had happened the other day, but Feorn was his usual self again, his wide grin revealing pointed fangs.

    “Did you know you  _talk_ in your sleep? Well, in your own language, but that didn’t make it any less  _entertaining_.” He chaffed her snickering. Groaning she crawled back under the blanket.

    “Yeah I’ll  _reconsider_ letting you stay next time if you decide to be rude like that.” She gave back grumbling. Feorn chuckled and dropped on the bed next to her. Carefully he lifted a corner of the blanket and spotted her green eye blinking at him. Jenna stuck out her tongue. Giving it a musing look he gently let a finger run over one of the eye patch’s clamps.

    “How much longer, do you think, will it take until you can take that ugly thing off?” he asked her but Jenna shrugged.

    “Nemon said only a few cycles. I think once it’s gone the first thing I’m going to do is my  _makeup_.” She had to laugh at the thought. The Djelb shook his head in confusion and pulled the blanket from her.

    “Fine by me, but first you’ll have to get up and get to work, c’mon!”

She shouted startled and tried to snatch the blanket back from him but he simply kept her away at arm’s length and grinned. “I’m gonna give it back to you once you’re done.” He said complacent and Jenna started wailing heart-rendingly; Feorn flattened his ears with a pained expression.

“Ooooor I’ll just let you have it now so you stop mewling. No, honestly,  _please_ stop that.” He pleaded and summarily tossed the blanket at her. The human snorted content and wrapped herself up in it.

“Come now, you don’t want Nemon to get angry at you for skipping class now, do you?” With an even wider grin he watched as her eye snapped open and she finally jumped up.

But then she stood before him, arms crossed, clearing her throat. Confused Feorn gazed down at her until Jenna nodded towards the door. “Oh, right! My fault.” Nonetheless he walked out of the room rather leisurely.

    “Why are you running around naked all the time in the first place?” she suddenly asked and he snorted.

    “And you think  _me_ rude… well, I can breathe better without it and move in general. No idea whether Djelb invented clothing at some point… I don’t like wearing it.”

She tilted her head, scrutinizing him with her one eye before nodding slowly.

    “Yeah, you’d look rather weird in jeans.” She laughed and shooed him out completely. In the hallway Feorn turned around again.

    “You wanna go for another flight later on? I could teach you how to properly fly a jet.” On her excited sound he grinned. “I’ll pick you up. Just leave enough free space in your brain for flying lessons.” Waggling his ears the Djelb took his leave and Jenna was finally able to change.

   
  


Nemon looked more than relieved when she entered the station. Car and Reliat smiled at her.

    “Jenna! Good to see you.” He took her aside, letting her sit down on a stretcher to ruck up the leg of her sweatpants. Luckily aliens didn’t know that this was considered an umkempt look. “I was afraid you’re feeling too wretched today but I’m glad you seem to be doing much better. What happened?” he asked under his breath while palpating her knee, scanning it with a portable MRI-Reader.

    “I… talked to Feorn. Well, he rather forced me to. After that it was… different. We talked a lot, about both our past.” Her meaningful silence made Nemon nod knowingly.    

    “Like I said… everyone here has done something they regret at some point. So, nobody will actually judge you for what you’ve done, the overall circumstances are too stark with everyone. Your knee is looking good. Do you feel any pain?”

She shook her head.

    “It still feels a bit too weak to walk on it but that won’t change if I don’t use it. I’d rather know how my eye is doing.” She asked hopefully but Nemon patted her hand.

    “Two cycles. Promise. Come now, today you will assist Reliat and Car with calibrating the Analyzers and get a cram-course in Vortian anatomy and physiology.”

It proved to be a busy day, but she was grateful for every little task Nemon and the two assistants charged her with. She quickly realized that Car was one to kid around with, while Reliat turned out to be pleasant company to talk to. The three slowly managed to harmonize despite Jenna being at a disadvantage due to her lacking knowledge, yet she easily compensated that with her quick perception and intuition.

When they were having a break Nemon asked her to label an MRI-scan of her skeleton he had taken during her first examination. The image was so detailed and high-res that she could even see every little bonelet. The Ilenian was fascinated by the human anatomy and kept asking her questions about humanity’s history of evolution or their physiology. It got pretty funny when she had to explain to him how human reproduction worked and what her breasts where good for. The topic bothered Car and Reliat for the rest of noon and deepened as Jenna told them how many women had their breasts operated to be bigger, what lead to Car stuffing her lab-coat with two bags of swabs.

The announced cram-course in Vortian anatomy consisted in Commander Tork entering the MedBay, seeking out Dr. Nemon because of an old injury plaguing him.

Fascinated Jenna examined another MRI-scan of the Vortian. You could see exactly where the pieces of shrapnel stuck inside his thoracic cage. Vortians didn’t have rips like humans, but more like crossed-over and netlike branched bone arches, drawing a tight mesh under the skin. Nemon told her that this structure made it impossible to get to a Vortian’s vital organs without sawing it open. Most of the time endoscopes and probes were used, entering through a little cut at the abdomen. Because of their leathery skin and the heavy bone structure they were relatively hard to injure, but also as hard to give medical treatment, at least when it came to internal injuries.

A bit nervous she followed Nemon’s instructions and finally managed to take a blood sample from Tork after a few minutes. At first she was about to panic when the needle wouldn’t pierce the thick skin, but then she held it more horizontal and the cannula sank in with almost no resistance. The special layering of the skin, like that of Kevlar, made it hard to penetrate; sometimes bullets would ricochet when hitting the skin perpendicularly. With a nearly horizontal angle you could simply squeeze sharp objects through the layers.

Tork gave a content nod when she pulled the needle out again.

    “I might consider coming to  _you_ from now on; Car seems to want to kill me every time I come for a blood sample.” He commented and laughed hoarsly as Car rolled her eyes.

    “Dad… you’re so  _embarrassing_.” She sighed and Jenna looked at them baffled. Car’s grim nature did seem familiar to her but she hadn't seen this one coming.

After Tork had left – not without giving his daughter a kiss on the cheek and scrutinizing Reliat watchfully – Nemon gave them the rest of the day off. Jenna was about to walk through the door when she almost bumped into Feorn again. He was grinning as always and linked arms with her in a smooth motion.

    “On time, you gotta hand it to Nemon. Ey, doc! I hope you didn’t make her carry boxes all day long!” he called out and you could hear an outraged snort from behind the desk. “Anyway, we should go before the crazy doctor changes his mind.”

Jenna snickered.

    “Can I eat something first? My stomach feels like a black hole.”

Feorn eyed her doubtfully, cocking a brow.

    “I don’t know,  _can_ you?”

She stopped mid-step.

    “You did  _not_ just say that.” She snorted and he smiled confused at her. “That’s like the most annoying pun on Earth, I didn’t expect it to be a thing throughout the galaxy.”  
  
  


The food was indefinable as always yet Feorn bravely stole a bite from her plate – whereat Jenna yelled at him for risking his health by eating unknown food that might be incompatible with his system – and said it tasted somewhat like Yorn, which was some sort of flesh-eating plant.

She talked about her day and felt normal to some extend for the first time in a long while. And the fact that Feorn was an attentive listener made it all the better.

When she was done Jenna felt the tension inside of her growing. The Djelb was pumped as well and couldn’t wait getting to the hangar. On their way to it he already explained to her the basic principles of flying a fighter jet and what she had to be mindful of.

After they got there he first of asked one of the techs for a suit for Jenna. The Ilenian had indeed a spare suit that even seemed to fit her. Feorn assisted her with the clasps and gave her a checking look-over. The tech nodded pleased and tended to the engine block he had been working on.

    “Alright… starting to get a little nervous…” Jenna admitted as they approached Feorn’s jet. The Djelb chuckled and put an arm around her shoulder.

    “Don’t worry, I’m still with you and it really isn’t as hard as you might think it is.” He helped her onto the wing, doing a standing jump himself to get on it. Jenna rolled her eye with a grin. Feorn sat inside the cockpit and she took her seat on his lap while trying to calm her pounding heart. Then he told her what to do pre-start: first thing was turning on the board-computer and booting all systems. He didn’t show her the buttons for any of that though, she was supposed to find out herself.

While Jenna could read Vortian the abbreviations made her ponder at first. Finally she just touched the screen above the cyclic and with a humming the jet booted up. Observant she read over what the screen was showing. Before Feorn could say something she touched another button.

    “I guess the first thing you do is a system-checkup, right?” she commented on his surprised expression. Feorn grinned.

    “See? Not hard at all. Next you gotta warm up the Gliders, the hovering-engines in the wings, yeah, that button. You should really keep this one in mind, it’s quite useful for many maneuvers. We however have to use it in order to get safely to the launch pad. If we used the main engines at the fighter’s tail the hull would have a nice hole in it.”

When the Gliders were warmed up he got the all clear from flight control and she started the engines. The jet came to life with a hiss underneath them. Jenna closed the canopy, retracted the landing gear and the flaps, and grasped the cyclic.

Carefully and awfully slow she maneuvered the hovering fighter towards the launch pad. Feorn calmly explained to her how to work the pedals of the Gliders’ steering system so that the jet wouldn’t tilt and lose balance.  After a few minutes she had made it to the drop off zone and wanted to leave the flying to Feorn again but the Djelb shook his head and smiled softly.

    “You’re doing great. You’ll manage the rest as well, trust me. Now switch to main engines.” – “F- Feorn I don’t think I-“   
But too late; the hatch opened under them and the suction had the jet dropping like a stone into the darkness. Jenna screamed and instinctively pushed the cyclic forward to stabilize the tumbling machine, with her free hand she felt hectically for the main engine’s switch. But she hadn’t expected the force of the thrust as they activated.

The fighter raced deeper into the void under the  _Rebellion_  until Jenna remembered to gear down and pull up. Now the jet shot up vertically next to the  _Rebellion_ ’s flank before she managed to bring it into a horizontal position and throttle the power so far that it didn’t feel like a rocket taking off anymore.  

Out of panic she had held her breath and gasped for air. But before she could compose herself Feorn grabbed her, pulled her around and kissed her – out of pure relief, she knew – but he took her breath away again for a second.

    “See?!” he laughed out, “ _Easy_!” Feorn sighed and dropped back into the seat. Jenna grinned and nudged him in the ribs.

    “Admit it, you thought we were going to die.” She shot back what made him laugh all the louder, a clearly  _relived_  laughter. She concentrated on the jet again, checked the displays on screen and re-activated the Gliders for more stability. Feorn pointed at a small planetoid in the distance.

    “Fly closer to it. If this thing has enough gravity we can do a few tricks and maneuvers where it’s important to know how the jet reacts.”

They approached the dwarf-planet and Jenna immediately felt how the jet was getting accelerated .

“As soon as gravity affects a fighter you have to increase speed to stay in the air. It’d be better if you turn the Gliders off for now, they only get in the way in the beginning.”

She steered the machine in a shallow angle towards the surface and heard the engine work harder. The jagged ground flew away beneath them. Carefully the human tested out how to control the jet, soon rolling it to the side to make sharp turns. The acceleration pressed both of them into the seat and it was just so breathtaking. She heard the blood rushing in her ears and her own, thunder-like heartbeat.

Feorn was still giving her instructions but she barely noticed it; too intuitively she controlled the enormous force under her. She had always been called a hellbent  _driver_ , but now she knew that she just hadn’t been able to live out her full potential up to this point. It didn’t take long until the fighter flew screws, rolls and reckless nosedives. Feorn shouted excited while she felt her jaws aching from grinning so hard.

A check of the screen made her frown however. The fuel was running low.

Utterly reluctant she left the planet’s gravitation and followed the Rebellion’s bright lights. Almost casually she steered the jet back to base and landed it much more elegant than last time.

Feorn laughed quietly and hugged her.

    “You’re a natural pilot… I  _knew_  it!” he muttered at her side and she felt his grin against her temple. When she thought about the kiss from earlier she tensed up a little in his arms.

    “Thank you… I think this was the best thing I’ve ever experienced… it felt so… free.” She replied and placed a hand on his arm.

    “You were literally  _boiling_ , your whole body glowing from joy… I’m glad you liked it.” He said awestruck. Jenna felt herself blushing and quickly opened the canopy before he could notice.

Outside she was faced with a downright mob staring at her and she stopped startled. Feorn stepped on the wing next to her, a wide grin on his face. Commander Tork left the group and tossed something at him.

    “Not bad… not bad at all, Jenna. I thought at first you wouldn’t get the bird up but then I was proven wrong. Losing a bet against a Djelb… I guess I’m getting too old for this.”

Jenna looked from the Vortian to Feorn, her mouth was open in speechless confusion. He raised his hands apologizing.

    “Ah, the Commander and I had a bet whether you’re fit to be a pilot or not. I guess now he’s gonna want to have you under his command.” He explained and looked shamefaced but Tork just laughed barking.

    “Well, that would require her to pledge her allegiance to the Resistance first. I can’t put her in the fleet otherwise. And I don’t think you’re already willing to dedicate your life to the Resistance’s cause, right?” The Commander looked at her and Jenna felt a little uncomfortable.

To say no right away would be a real insult towards the rebels. But she had no idea whether she was ready to fight again. Or if she even wanted to put her life on the line once more.

    “I… would like to pledge my allegiance but before Doctor Nemon doesn’t assure me that I’m completely recovered I fear I might be more of a  _hazard_ to the Resistance than an asset.” She replied hesitating what made some of the aliens chuckle. Tork nodded respectful.

    “That is a wise decision. However, we already look forward to welcome you properly in our ranks.” With this the show was over and the crowd scattered. Jenna exhaled relieved as Feorn put his arm around her.

    “They like you.” He simply stated. She looked up to him doubtful.

    “You think so? I rather got the feeling they were about to stone me to death if I had said the wrong thing.” She mumbled, letting her gaze wander through the hangar lost in thoughts. The Djelb laughed quietly.

    “I admit, that was a delicate situation; but you seem to have chosen the right words. To be honest most of them are still trying to get an idea of you. You are actually a little bit famous around here.”

Now she smiled crooked and turned towards him.

    “And let me guess: you didn’t have  _anything_ to do with that, hm?”

He snorted amused.

    “Me?  _Nonsense_ … I’m still convinced Nemon praises you to the skies in his free minutes. He’s really fond of you, you know… which was one of the reasons I… reacted so viciously when… you know.”

She nodded slowly. I still made her feel guilty that she had lied to the doctor.

    “And… what about you?” she asked so quietly that his ears snapped forward.

    “Eh? What do you…” then he understood. “Ahh…  _hm_. I guess I’m fond of you too… err… yea… I do like you a lot.” His hem and haw made her grin.

    “ _Adorable_.” With this she jumped off the jet and left him standing there. Feorn laughed after overcoming his shock.

    “Okay, wow. Didn't expect that.” He fessed up and landed next to her soft-fooded. “Let’s go to the gym tomorrow. I can teach you how to kill an Irken with just a spoon.” He joked as they left the hangar. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter shall have Irken evilness in it ehehe... 
> 
> Tork is love, Tork is life!


	37. Live - Pt. 2

### \- 18 – Live

#### Part 2

  
This night Jenna slept deep and dreamlessly again, exhausted from all the medical and flight training. That’s why she was more than startled when a faint beeping woke her. At first she had no idea where the strange noise was originating from, but then she spotted the Chronometer blinking in the darkness. So  _that_ was the alarm Nemon had installed for her.

Still half asleep she grabbed it and looked at the small display. Quickly she found the button turning off the alarm and felt for the light switch. When she was done dressing up Jenna carefully palmed over her eye patch. She couldn’t feel anything different about it but she trusted Nemon and his prognosis.

She decided to get a cup of coffee first; since she didn’t know the real name of the delicious drink she just kept calling it that.

But before she even arrived at the mess hall a boom shook the ship and she felt the jerk beneath her feet. Alarmed she looked around, glaring warning lights tinted the hallway in a bright red and orange, and an automatic voice shrieked commands.

The  _Rebellion_  was under attack!

Following her first impulse she was about to run straight to the MedBay but then she felt a cold fear clawing at her heart and a dark misgiving filling her with dread. Immediately she turned on her heels and sprinted for the upper levels, towards the Command Bridge. She had to witness it with her own eyes, had to find out for herself that the attack wasn’t what she was apprehensive of…

Fighter pilots came running her way and suddenly something blue rushed past her. Jenna wheeled around.

    “Feorn!” she shouted over the noise. The Djelb stopped surprised and turned around.

    “What’re you doing here?! Get to Nemon!” He already wanted to lead her into the other direction but the human pulled him back.

    “Who’s attacking us?” she asked with her voice shaking. Feorn’s gaze grew dark, he seemed to know what was really worrying her.

    “An Irken ship. It’s cloaked, so we can't identify it yet. But I got a pretty _bad_  feeling about this.” He growled and she thought seeing hatred gleam in his eyes.

Jenna nodded.

    “Yeah… I feel the same way. If… if it’s really  _him_ -“, she started but was all of a sudden pushed against the wall. Feorn kissed her fervidly, sweeping her mind clean of any thoughts. Automatically she clutched at him and returned the kisses; the barbels on his chin tickling her skin as they brushed over her jaw. Everything went quiet for a split second and her breath and heartbeat was the only thing present, as well as the alien man in front of her. He gently caressed her neck before slowly breaking away.

    “I won’t let him hurt you again. I won’t let this monster take you away again, I promise! Go see the Doc, he’ll watch over you.” His voice was a rumbling, even more intense due to its subharmonics, and before she could reply anything he already ran off towards the flight deck. Jenna stayed there a moment longer, trying to ease her racing heart.

This kiss was different than the one in the jet… that had only been a peck, they had both been very excited and pumped why she didn’t give much weight to it. But this just now… he seemed protective, serious and really concerned. Almost affectionate.

She had to lean against the wall for a second. What the hell had happened just now? Did Feorn actually develop feelings for her without her noticing? Sure, he was always flirty and ambiguous around her, messing around trying to make her blush. But this was  _serious_. Or maybe he just wanted to keep her from doing something really stupid; like bursting into the hangar and taking one of the empty fighters perhaps to observe the fight from up close?

   
  


The doors to the MedBay revealed a nervously pacing Nemon, talking to Tork on his Chronometer.

    “Do the fighters have a visual? Yes? Invader  _Spleen_? What’s he doing that far away from the Armada? I understand… yes, she just entered, thank you Commander.”

When Jenna stepped up next to him the Ilenian put an arm around her and exhaled relieved. “It’s a different invader. Spleen. It looks like the fighters won’t have any trouble taking him out. But interrogating him is going to get tricky. Most Irken tend to kill themselves before they spill anything.” The physician mused along while Jenna had to clutch the edge of his desk to support herself. She had been dead sure that Set had chased her down in the end.

Car and Reliat just entered the station, both of them carrying two cups of coffee, although Reliat’s were of another color, probably because Ilenians had a different diet than Vortians and humans.

    “You alright? You look terrible.” Car commented in her straightforward way. Jenna nodded slowly, taking one of the drinks she handed her.

    “Yeah… it’s fine. I just hope nobody gets hurt.” She muttered whereat everybody hummed agreeing before they got up to prepare the MedBay and the lab.

A whole while long they didn’t hear anything from the Bridge when Tork suddenly announced the battle’s outcome over the  _Rebellion_ ’s speakers.

    “The attacker was overwhelmed and taken into custody. We suffered no losses. Everyone back to their stations, we will take a little detour in case it was a scout. We shall begin with the prisoner’s interrogation shortly.”

Jenna sat up listening. Maybe she could find out whether or not Set had returned to the Massive up to now. And if he was still alive.

     “Nemon, may I go to the Bridge? I have to speak to Commander Tork!” Her request didn’t seem to surprise the Ilenian, he just nodded.

As fast as she could she followed her Chronometer towards the Command Bridge where she was pointed to the prison cells. It took her some time to get there and on top of all two guards blocked her way.

    “Please, I have to talk to the Commander, it’s important!” she pleaded with them, a Vortian and a curious metal creature.

They exchanged a telling look yet the Vort quietly talked into his Chronometer. He cast her a surprised side glance when he received the reply.

    “Alright, human. The Commander wants you to come in.” With this they stepped aside and opened the heavy door to the interrogation room. It was dark save for a glaring bright light what made her immediately think of interrogation rooms in movies. The Irken, a relatively small invader, was chained up to a wall with his Pak taped to keep him from using his spider legs. Despite it being still attached to him she could already smell the stench of black blood leaking out of multiple wounds.

Appalled she turned towards Tork who stood at the other end of the room in front of a table, wiping his hands clean just now. He didn’t look at her but his face spoke volumes.

    “Must disgust you… that we use similar methods as them. Sadly this is the only language to which they answer. I assume you have your own reasons for being here and since I got to know everything I wanted to he’s all yours. The rest of him that is. I’ll wait outside. Good look.” The Vortian walked past her and it got quiet. Only the Irken’s hoarse breath could be heard.

Hesitatingly Jenna approached him and raised a hand. The invader flinched back but she calmed him quietly.

    “I won’t hurt you. I promise to end your agony quickly if you tell me what I want to know.”

The Irk lifted his head, already snarling to hiss at her but then he froze.

    “You… I  _know_ … you…” a wet coughing shook his body and he spat out blood. “The  _arena_ … heh. Got me a nice little… stash of cash off of your fights…” he grinned. “ ‘m sorry… that’s probably  _not_  what you wanted… to hear.” The invader apologized and Jenna cocked a brow. He appeared to be genuinely sorry and she realized that it must have been his Pak’s Coding failing in his death struggle. Gently she lifted his chin, wiping the blood from his cheek.

    “It’s alright… and I’m sorry you’re treated this way… I just want to know one thing: what can you tell me about invader Set? Where is he?” Her voice was trembling slightly. Spleen’s eyes widened.

    “Yeah… they… declared open season on him. Said he’d gotten mad. I was out there for the bounty… he was supposed to be somewhere around this quadrant… instead… I got  _rebels_.” He chuckled quietly until a second cough shook him.

Jenna’s heart stopped. So the Tallest had put a bounty on Set’s head?

    “How much?” she breathed and his eyes gleamed feverish when he thought about it.

    “Enough so that the whole damn armada has nothing better to do than trying to hunt him down. They want him dead but for this amount everybody will gladly take the risk that comes with it.”

She took a step back, aghast. She had been right about the Tallest wanting to kill Set and now they didn’t even bother to smother it up anymore. The invader’s chin slumped back on his chest.

    “If that’s all you wanted to know, human… I am in a lot of pain…”

She couldn’t react, just walked over to the table where Tork had left the torture instruments, grabbing a long knife with her heart pounding.

    “Where should I-“ – “Just… cut my throat… hey.” She looked at him and he smiled. “Thank you… human.”

The trembling of her hand stopped and she carefully lifted his chin. With a swift, strong slash she cut the Irken’s throat and recoiled as the blood splashed towards her, crimson and black. He twitched once more and then his gurgling intakes seized.

Jenna dropped the blade and clasped her hands over her mouth.

She had just  _killed_  somebody. Sure, the fights in the arena had been a lot more brutal and she had killed more than one creature but back then she was fighting for her life. Spleen had been unarmed and at her mercy.

Her thoughts were so churning that she could barely suppress the urge to throw up. Where was Set now? Was he already dead, his head in one of the Tallest’s display cases?

She cursed herself for destroying her suit’s headset. She felt guilty for leaving him behind. She  _missed_ him, his voice; no matter if sounding involuntarily gentle or angry. She missed the little chirr he would emit when she sang. And the worst of all was: she couldn’t tell anybody, Feorn least of all. Once again she felt terribly alone.

Mechanically she stood up from the table she had sank against and left the interrogation room without another look. Tork turned around, curiously tilting his head to the side.

    “So? You don’t seem really satisfied.” He stated a tad disappointed. She shook her head.

    “He… didn’t spill anything. Just begged me to kill him. I guess I’m too soft for inquisitions.” She replied and headed back to the MedBay without waiting for a reply.  
  
  


Nemon could tell just by looking at her that something was wrong but didn’t say anything. He merely told her to analyze a few samples and help Car with taking stock afterwards.

She got through her work silently, lost in thoughts and simply too depressed to talk all that much. Luckily Car didn’t disturb the silence which Jenna was thankful for. Reliat on the other hand would surely have wanted to talk to her, he was the perfect psychiatrist and she actually played with the thought of talking to him when her Chronometer started beeping and wouldn’t stop. Confused she stared at it. Car coughed amused.

    “Well… if I were you I’d get that.” She commented arid but her grin didn’t fit the situation. It was then that Jenna realized somebody was calling her.

    “Oh… yeah.” She muttered and took the ping.

    “Are you alright? Tork said you went to see the Irken. What did you want from him?” Feorn. Of course.

She sighed.

    “I guess I just wanted to blow off some steam… he asked me to kill him and I did… I don’t really know what I wanted in there. I’m fine.” She added but noticed how fake it sounded the very second she said it.

Feorn got quiet for a moment.

    “Come to the flight deck later, okay?  I got a surprise for you.” He wanted to cheer her up she knew that. But she had difficulties to bring up any enthusiasm for the thought of having to socialize. Right now all she wanted to do was getting back to her quarter to hide under her blanket and maybe go to bed early if she was actually able to fall asleep.

    “Yea I’ll come over, see you.” She answered deliberately and tried to ignore the Vortian’s side glances. “Even though I really don’t feel like it…” the human mumbled and now Car turned to her confused.

    “ _What_?”

Jenna flinched and wanted to sputter an explanation when she realized that she looked more confused than irritated.

    “Hm?” Jenna did and Car rolled her eyes.

    “You just said something in  _your_ language. That’s not really nice when I’m standing right next to you.”

She almost sighed relieved. Since she was able to use Vortian without even thinking about it by now it occurred more seldom that she spoke in her own language. That actually scared her, she didn’t want to lose this connection to her home as well.

    “I- I just try not to forget my mother tongue is all. That’s why I sometimes use it when I think to myself. I just asked what Feorn is up to this time.” Car didn’t notice her miserable smile because she laughed.

    “Oh yeah! I heared that he let you fly his jet. Would have loved to see that with my own eyes.” She rasped. Jenna sighed.

    “It probably looked like we would crash into the  _Rebellion_  any second. At any rate it was kinda embarrassing exiting the fighter and seeing literally the whole crew standing there.” She admitted with a shrug.

Car stopped counting the syringes and leaned against the shelf with one hand on her hip.

    “You know, Jenna, you should really get out some more. People around here really want to get to know you. Besides, you’re nice, smart and considering you’re such a weird alien not even that unattractive.”

The human snorted outraged.

    “Why  _thank you_!” But she couldn’t keep a laugh. Car gave her a crooked grin.

    “I’m just saying. Say how about I take you to the  _crew quarters_  with me tonight? To let the cycle die away nice and easy. It’s always busy and I bet the rest of the crew would like to see you from up close for once without you jamming needles into their arms.”

That was more than Car had ever said to her in one go and for a few seconds Jenna was completely speechless.

    “Are you sure? I… I would actually like to…” she said hesitating and the Vort’s face brightened.

    “Awesome, then it’s set. I’m not sure when you’re normally going to sleep but I guess a few Ti more or less won’t hurt you.”

They compared their Chronometers and Jenna decided to take a nap after visiting Feorn and then get ready. The anticipation was already visible on Car’s face when they returned from taking stock and even Jenna felt notably better. Reliat might be the better listener but his partner preferred taking things into her own hands instead of talking about them. In a way she reminded her of Lauren.

Jenna stopped mid-step at this thought and smiled distantly. Car looked at her.

    “Something wrong? You’re so absent this whole time! It’s gotta do something with this Irk, doesn’t it?” she asked but the human just shook her head and followed her.

    “No, not at all… I just realized that you remind me of a friend I had back on Earth. She wasn’t all that grumpy as you but you’re surely alike.”

Car didn’t seem to have expected something like that; her wide eyes spoke literally volumes.

    “Oh…” she just uttered as Jenna laughed and gently dragged her along.

On their way they met with Reliat and Car briefly told him the news that Jenna would come with them whereat the Ilenian raised a brow.

    “Don’t you think it’d be unfair that we’re going together and Jenna without, well, plus one? I just don’t want you to feel excluded. Car can be very… ahem… clingy when she had a few drinks.” He said nervous and she looked at him surprised.

    “Drinks? Like, booze, alcohol, that kinda stuff?” the fact that the Vortian language had quite a  _few_ words for this term made this better already.

Car gave her a wide grin.

    “You should better consult  _Nemon_ on what and more importantly how much you can drink. This stuff isn’t really made for free trade if you catch my drift.” She warned her with a wink.

Jenna shrugged.

    “If there’s gonna be booze I got my company already, so you don’t have to worry. Or do you?”

They laughed and headed back to the lab together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter obviously party time so ye get your party hats and shot glasses!


	38. Live - Pt. 3

### \- 18 – Live

#### Part 3

 

Nemon let her go surprisingly early today; obviously Feorn had successfully talked him into letting her leave sooner. So she took off the armlet qualifying her as medical assistant in training and left after agreeing on meeting up at her quarter with Car.

On her way to the hangar her thoughts promptly traveled back to the kiss this morning and her heart performed a sudden kick-start, causing a deep blush on her face. Since she knew that Feorn could literally scan her like a thermographic camera she got only more flustered when she tried to calm down.  And just like apprehended the Djelb eyed her with an interested look as she approached him.

    “Well you sure didn’t  _run_ …” he pondered but she shot him an angry glare and he changed subjects, not without snickering first. “But at least you look better than what you sounded like earlier. I hope you’ll like my surprise, I worked all night on it!” Feorn chattered and took her hand, dragging her behind.

Jenna rolled her eye with a smile. It was beyond her how such a feared killer could be so innocent and cheerful most of the time.

He led her into the back part of the hall and stopped before a tarped fighter jet. Confused Jenna cocked a brow; Feorn shot her a grin and yanked off the tarp. It revealed a pitch black jet with Vortian symbols painted on the side. Curiously she read the markings.

    “Wing of Light…  _Lightwing_ …” she muttered even more bemused and looked up to Feorn. He smiled softly though it was a bit insecure.

    “Do you like her? I had to guess your favorite color but then I thought maybe black might be more fitting for a space jet than  _light blue_.” He giggled and Jenna blinked once before she finally understood.

    “This… this jet is for…  _me_?! Feorn… I … I  _can’t_ , I mean… oh  _wow_!” she stammered shocked what made him laugh.

    “Of course you can! I insist! If you don’t like the color I can help you repaint it.” He didn’t get any further, she hugged him so stormily that it cut his breath.

“Ugh, okay, please just  _tell_  me you don’t like her, there’s really no need to  _kill_ me on the spot!” he gasped and Jenna let loose, but not up on him.

    “She’s beautiful!” she breathed, brushing over the side awestricken. “Did you choose the name?”

Feorn rubbed his neck sheepishly.

    “Well, yea… I wanted the name to match you, you know?”

That caused a rather awkward silence between them in which Jenna tried to come up with a response. “There’s still some things I need to work on but she should be good to go tomorrow.” He muttered lost in thoughts. Jenna let go off him and took a step back to take a good look at her own jet – she still couldn’t really believe it.

    “I’m going to the crew quarters with Car and Reliat tonight.” She suddenly mentioned and noticed him pricking up his ears from the corner of her eye.

    “Really? Well the music was one thing but it would have surprised me if you were a downright party animal.” He replied to that and she laughed.

    “Oh you have no idea! On Earth I was the queen of party animals.” Now it was up to Feorn to snort.

    “Alright. Well I’m looking forward to witnessing that.” He grinned at her and her expression seemed to get out of control.

    “You’re… coming as well?”

He looked genuinely offended.

    “Ain’t I? I thought your  _casual_ comment was meant to be a subtle  _invitation_. Ah geez… and here I was already planning to get dressed up for the occasion!” the Djelb groused and she raised her hands apologizing.

    “No I… that’s not what I meant by that. I’d love having you join us. At least I wouldn’t be the fifth wheel with just the two of them.” That sounded so pathetic that she ran her fingers through her hair nervously. Feorn smiled.

    “You would? Well then I’ll certainly join you.” Quickly he bent down to her and pecked her check. “Welp, see you later!”

Before she could reply anything he had jumped onto the wing and climbed into the cockpit, thus she just turned around and left the hangar, her cheeks burning again.

 

There were still a few hours left for a nap and getting dressed but she decided to get something to eat first. It still worried her how irregularly and little she ate but it probably just took her some time getting used to eating at all again.

Back in her quarter she searched through her backpack for something to wear. With a frown she realized that her already scarce belongings had on top of all been reduced the last days; her tracking pants and her top got shredded in the arena fights and the rest was already kind of smelly. Jenna kneaded her chin. She would have to ask Car where to wash her clothes and if there was a possibility to get new ones. Human fashion was undeniably rare in the galaxy.

But that would have to wait for now – now it was her turn with taking a shower. The water was so refreshing that she started singing in the shower while getting clean and trying to untangle her hair. With it still wet Jenna flopped on her bed. Sighing she buried herself in her blanket, kicking off her pants, and slowly fell asleep.

 

She all but missed the Chronometer since it was still in her pants’ pocket but somehow she woke up regardless. Quickly she searched the pile of clothes and finally found what she had been looking for: the pair of jeans she had worn on the  _Massive_. Going with it she put on a plain, tight black top – her last one – and jumped into her bath armed with makeup. It really wasn’t much left what stung her a little when she carefully applied kajal, mascara, loose powder and lipstick as sparingly as she managed to.

The transformation was incredible nonetheless even though she only did her one eye for the most part and she had to smirk. It had been a while now since she had seen herself like this. With her confidence freshly invigorated she wanted to stash her makeup inside her backpack again and suddenly felt something hard against her fingertips. Confused she closed her hand around the curious thing and took it out. Spooked she almost dropped it. It was the necklace with the carved out crystal Set had given to her.

Immediately her fear came back with full force, her worry. Was he dead? Did they torture him to find out where the human had ended up?

Jenna stared the necklace down furiously. For the first time in forever she had begun to start  _living_  once more and still the Irken wouldn’t let her go. She wanted to destroy it, flush it down the drain… but then she just pressed it to her chest and put it back into the bag. Instead she put on her ankle bracelet, her earrings and lastly her pumps, the only pair of shoes beside her footworn sneakers and the ballerinas she had brought with her.

A completely normal human woman on a completely normal evening, she thought to herself and longed for the booze and the easy oblivion it would bring her. After her meal she had asked Nemon about it. He would just grin, telling her not to try keeping up with Car at any circumstances.

As if that thought had been a prompt it knocked on the door. Jenna opened and was confronted with a widely grinning Car; Reliat was standing right behind his girlfriend and had an expression that was half apologetic half pained.

    “There she is: our favorite human!” Car squealed larking and hugged her quite stormily and a tad brutal. The Ilenian rolled all his four eyes at once.

    “I’m terribly sorry, Jenna. She knows where her father hides his  _stash_.” He explained exhausted and grumpily handed Car a dark bottle when she shot him a glance. The Vortian giggled and pulled Jenna over to the bed. Fascinated she noticed that Car was wearing a purple dress, though it wasn’t a dress like you’d find on Earth. It had a couple of broad straps covering her shoulders and arms, was tight-fit down to her tiny waist and parted into a slim band at the front and a broader one on her back, leaving enough open space for her back-bent legs. Underneath the dress she wore thin pants, like tights, tailored from a darker cloth with finely bulging intertwined lines.

Reliat was wearing something that really appeared to be a blazer over a diving suit; which looked rather silly at first glance but was by all means very attractive if you didn’t think in terms of human fashion. By now Jenna had seen enough aliens to rid herself of any preoccupation regarding looks and simply accept things the way they were.

    “Oooh, you look amazing! So different than you use to!” Car blurted out between taking two mighty swigs from the bottle and handing it to Jenna and tugging at Reliat’s sleeve. “Rel, doesn’t she look stunning?”

The Ilenian gave her a knowing grin.

    “You  _both_  look stunning, love.” He replied diplomatically and Jenna chuckled. Car seemed perturbed that he hadn’t taken the bait and instead took a look at Jenna’s shoes.

Just now she took an encouraged swig from the bottle and immediately regretted it: the stuff was hot like battery acid and most likely stronger than Absinth. Her eye teared up and she quickly gave the flask back to Car who didn’t seem to mind taking a big gulp herself.

    “Good, right?” the Vortian asked keen while Jenna writhed, giving her a thumbs up with shaking hand.

    “ _Sick_.” She gasped strained and tried to keep her guts from melting through sheer willpower. Pleased Car took another sip as if the bottle contained water instead of straight poison. Jenna leaned over to Reliat and said under her breath:

    “Please tell me there’s gonna be  _lite_  drinks… I… I think I’m dying.”

He gave her a pitying look but nodded.

    “Don’t worry, Vortians can hold their liquor better than the rest of the galaxy but the fewest drink the really packing stuff. Car is… special.” They both snickered at that and her friend decided it was high time they got going.

    “Alright, losers, let’s go.” She grunted and jumped off the bed. “We don’t want our dear Jenna here to meet the rest of the crew completely wasted!” she said, nudging the human in the side what almost sent Jenna flying. Well that would make for a nice bruise in the morning…

Car wrapped her arm around Reliat’s middle and walked ahead. Although she was clearly tipsy she wasn’t even slightly weaving and Jenna actually had trouble keeping up with the perky Vortian on her high heels. How she managed balancing on these thin stalks was beyond her.

 

The crew quarters were situated in the lower decks of the  _Rebellion_  and really reminded Jenna of an underground club, built makeshift from a spare hangar or storage area. When the doors slid open they were already greeted by genial noise and music. Jenna had to grin noticing the resemblance to human music. It had a touch of deep house.

Car led them to an empty corner booth and slumped on the metal bench. Reliat went to get the first round and Jenna looked around curiously. When she noticed some of the aliens were actually dancing her heart did an excited jump. The whole atmosphere was so familiar she completely forgot that they were on a space ship. Her foot was already bobbing to the music and the urge to move grew stronger by the second.

    “Let’s go dance as soon as Reliat’s back with our drinks, okay?” she urged Car and the Vortian blinked surprised before grinning.

    “Alright sister but be warned. Once I step up to this it’s gonna be fire.”

Jenna laughed. Vortian slang was still a bit unusual to her since it sounded so human-like.

    “Perfect, then let’s blow this joint.” She shot back and Car tilted her head confused.

    “Why would we blow it up?” she asked genuinely confused and the human laughed all the louder but put her off.

    “A human expression, sorry.” She was still giggling when Reliat came back with their drinks and smiled at them bemused.

    “I’m glad you’re getting along.” Was all he could say before Jenna and Car broke into laughter again. Jenna took the offered cup and cautiously sniffed it. The content smelled alcoholic but by far not as demonic as the swill from earlier. Even more carefully she took the tiniest of sips. It tasted sweet with something strangely salty in the end but by all means drinkable. Encouraged she drank more, watching the crowd. Many of her glances were returned just as curious and the friendly atmosphere was starting to seep into her.

Car downed her own drink and got up.

    “Come on, I thought you wanted to dance!” she said cheerily and drew Jenna off the bench. Reliat gave them a nod but decided to stay at the table.

The dancefloor was simply the middle of the room but at least it meant enough space for everybody. At first she moved a bit shy between the other aliens but Car was dancing so boisterously that it carried her along. Just follow the beat, let go and feel alive. The sensation of commonplace was so weird that Jenna had to laugh. The Vortian took that as encouragement and grinned. Jenna watched her enthralled.

With her long, bent legs Car could move her hips way better than every human even though it looked dangerously unsteady on these thin stalks. She tried to do a few of her moves but failed and now had to laugh about herself. They kept dancing, forgot the time and since there was no break between the single tracks there was nothing interrupting them.

Suddenly hands wrapped around her hips and Jenna jumped with a start. Before she could turn around however there was a familiar snickering.

    “I gotta say I never would’ve thought you can move like that with your strange stilts for legs.” Feorn walked around her and smiled at Car. The Vortian hooted and gave him a punch on the arm.

    “How come you leave your beloved jet to party with the  _peasants_ , Djelb?” she hollered over the music. Feorn just grinned and Car broke into laughter. “Alright just watch out you’re not getting in my way. Would be a shame if you ended up in the MedBay tonight.” With this she continued to dance wildly. Jenna smiled at him.

    “I was wondering when you’d decide to show up.” She had to lean closer to drown the music. Feorn looked around and shrugged.

    “Eh, I couldn’t decide on what to wear.” He replied serious and she laughed.

    “Yeah, I guess it’s hard to find something that suits your skin color.” She teased what earned her a surprised glance.

    “Wow… you’re  _mean_  today. Might I say by the way that you look absolutely breathtaking, despite the eye-patch.” He gave back and let his gaze travel over her. She grinned and danced on; Feorn followed suit astonishingly well. He moved easygoing and with a natural self-confidence – he knew what he was doing, and that he looked good doing it. It was fun dancing with him. After a while Car left them to go back to Reliat and for some reason she gave Jenna a significant look before disappearing between the other aliens.

Although Jenna tried to ignore it she soon noticed that they were closing in on each other while they danced. Normally she would have blamed the crowded dancefloor but right now there was enough free space; and yet she came closer and closer to Feorn until he put a hand on her back and pulled her towards him. Jenna gasped surprised and looked up. Feorn’s eyes were almost glowing in the dark just like the green spots on his face. She recoiled in an attempt to break away from those hypnotizing eyes but caught herself how it drew her back; closer. All the way close to the Djelb.

The beat changed again without any real interruption. A bystander, maybe someone who knew Jenna and Feorn a bit better might have noticed how the same second the music changed the energy between them shifted as well. Instead of moving away again she came so close that they almost touched each other. Their movements synchronized and blended into a sensual dance. The two entirely different beings seemed to foresee the other’s steps as if they were rehearsed.

Jenna didn’t feel how she started to sweat and how her knee was aching; the music was too captivating and the dance with Feorn too perfect for her to worry about her looks or who was watching. He felt the same way, the grin had vanished from his face and instead Feorn looked concentrated and nearly serious. The whole time he returned her challenging gaze, reached out and yet didn’t touch her.

It was a game, a conversation, a fight. Pure amusement had turned into a contest. Who would be first to yield to the urge to touch the other? Who would be first to make a mistake and break the spell?

They would’ve danced for hours more if Car hadn’t gatecrashed their dance. Her wolf-whistle startled Jenna so hard that she twisted her ankle and lost her balance. But before she could even react Feorn caught her and righted her back up. For a moment his face was next to hers and she heard his breath just as shallow as her own. Jenna laughed insecure and they quickly parted.

But the feeling stayed. Both of them looked at each other like they were about to start all over again. Car dragged them towards the bar where Reliat was waiting with some shots. Immediately Jenna was approached by some crew members who wanted to know more about her. Car knew every one of them by name but the human didn’t really have the brain right now to memorize them all. The fact that Feorn was still staring at her didn’t make it easier at all.

Quickly she downed her shot to straighten out her thoughts and the burning in her throat luckily made her somewhat more focused.

But only for a second: the stuff went to her head in a split second. All of a sudden she broke into loud laughter and had to hold onto Car to not fall from her barstool. She promptly joined in and so the curious crew members just stood there confused. Reliat kindly shooed them away, however it took nearly forever until Jenna finally stopped laughing. Giggling she struggled for air, holding her aching side with one hand, the other one was still clutching Car’s.

    “Oh god…” she groaned exhausted, “I never felt this good in a long time. What the hell  _was in_  that stuff?” she asked and hiccupped from laughing so hard. The Vortian squealed all over again, why Reliat answered her:

    “Actually nothing unusual… oh, but… maybe you reacted to this one spice. You can get a similar effect when you smoke the plant.”

Jenna’s eye widened and she gave another snicker.

    “Please don’t tell me I’m on space-weed.” She pleaded but immediately ordered another round.

After Car had calmed down they all went back to dancing. The Vortian and her boyfriend were swaying in close embrace – more like Car was holding on to Reliat’s neck and he just carried her around. Jenna moved much more recklessly than before and Feorn kept his distance at first. Then Car came to the glorious conclusion that Jenna made for a much better dancing partner than Reliat and the rest of the night they danced together. Jenna showed her a few dance moves from Earth she used to do with Lauren what made Car break into a hysterical fit of giggles.

When Reliat eventually gave his drunk girlfriend a fireman’s lift and said goodnight to Feorn and Jenna both women started wailing reluctantly. Jenna tried to hold Car’s hand but Feorn grabbed her around the waist and pulled her back with gentle force.

    “You should probably go to bed as well, I’m afraid you’re drunk.” He explained to her amused. The human snorted.

    “Oh, if you think  _that’s_  drunk you should come visit Earth with me sometime. After that you won’t touch another drink for ages! Or me…” she giggled again but went silent when she noticed the look on his face.

    “I don’t think so…” Feorn murmured and bent down to her. Jenna’s heart jumped into her throat all of a sudden and she looked at him with big eyes. He kissed her so softly that her knees gave in but he held her tight. Cautiously he bit her lip and she didn’t even think about the poison fangs as she returned the kiss more than happy.

Way too soon Feorn parted from her and looked down on her smiling. Jenna grinned, what had to look pretty silly given her blood alcohol level, and let her hands brush over his arms.

    “But I don’t want to go to sleep just yet.” She replied just as quiet, her voice husky from the spicy liquor. Feorn’s ears pricked up and lay back on his head what made her laugh. “Well  _I_  wanted to keep  _dancing_ … I don’t know what  _you_ were  _thinking_  just now.” She commented sassy. The Djelb gave a crooked grin but the blue dots running over his cheeks told her how nervous he was. It was actually fun teasing  _him_  for once.

With an innocent look she stepped up closely to him until she had to tilt her head back and let her fingers dance across his chest. “You… wouldn’t have anything… naughty in mind… would you?” Jenna purred whereat he laughed out.

    “Oh I see how it’s going to be… okay, I’ll play your game.” He said chuckling, grabbed her hand and whirled her around until she almost hit the ground before he caught her swiftly, bringing his face close to hers. “Well, to be honest I had planned to seduce you in passing and love you till you’re hopelessly smitten with me. But if you want to stay I’d happen to know a dark corner where we’re for ourselves.”

Jenna felt how she turned red and tried to laugh but her throat felt constricted what maybe had to do something with Feorn’s finger slowly running down her neck. She couldn’t even manage to grin. Thus she could just lay still in his arms trying not to freak out while his hand lowered further and further.

Suddenly Feorn laughed and pulled her back on her feet. “Well? Something wrong?” he asked roguish when she looked at him confused and a bit dashed. “I thought you wanted to  _play_.”

Jenna huffed and boxed his arm.

    “Spoilsport.” She laughed but Feorn was already looking at her with this particular gaze again.

    “You’re literally glowing… it’s beautiful.” He said with such fascination in his voice that she got even warmer. “And you react much faster to compliments than anyone I know.” He added grinning whereat she blushed once more. Laughing he hugged her, resting his chin on her head before letting go and taking her hand. “Come on, you’re not doing yourself a favor if you miss Nemon’s lessons because you’re too tired.”

Jenna let him drag her along without protest, but did shoot the bar a last longing look.

Silent they headed back to their quarters. It was a slightly tensed silence, at least she felt like it. Feorn appeared to be his old self or simply didn’t let it show. When they stopped at their doors Jenna turned around and smiled insecure.

    “So…. Here we are. Good night?” she started and he chuckled quietly.

    “Sleep tight. I see you tomorrow on the flight deck.” He pecked her on the forehead and wanted to turn around when she touched his arm.

    “Feorn, I…” she went silent and wasn’t sure if she could go on but as he turned around again she took a deep breath. “Did you… ehm… was that serious? What you said only just?” she asked with beating heart. At first she wasn’t sure if he had caught on to what she was getting at but then the Djelb grinned sheepishly and rubbed the back of his head.

    “Ah,  _that_ … sorry if I put you on the spot with that again.” He punted but she chased it up.

    “But would you have…  _would_  you?” she felt so very miserable for asking something like that. But she had to know what was going on inside his mind.

Feorn looked down on her musing. Then he nodded slightly.

    “I would… in fact I would gladly. But Nemon would kill me if I slept with you just like that without first checking if it works at all. Biologically I mean.” He added when she cocked a brow. “There’s a lot that can go wrong, you know. But above all  _you_  have to give your consent. Until I know for sure that you really want this I won’t do anything that would press you in any way.”

Jenna crossed her arms giving him a nod.

    “Is that so. Then what’s the kiss for?” actually it had been multiple by now but that was not the point.

Feorn hung his head in shame and sighed.

    “I just couldn’t help myself, I’m sorry. If you don’t want them I can take them back.” He said mock contrite and winked at her. Jenna laughed.

    “Well, we could at least be even…” With this she raised herself on tiptoes and kissed him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *flies into the sun laughing*
> 
> THEY GONNA DO THE THING ARE YOU HAPPY


	39. Live - Pt. 4

### \- 18 – Live

#### Part 4

 _8 hours later - Rebellion - MedBay_  
  
  
She arrived too late and with the worst hangover of the century in the MedBay where Car greeted her with a wide grin.

    “Guess it was a bit too much for you, hm?” the Vortian cooed and Jenna grimaced.

    “Zip it, that’s all your fault… augh my  _head_.” The human growled in pain and hoped frantically Nemon would have something to cure her headache. Reliat cast her a pitying glance and an encouraging smile as she slogged along to Nemon’s desk with heavy footsteps. He raised his brows in reproach.

    “I  _told_ you not to keep up with Car.” He sighed and put the datapad away before rising from his chair and gesturing at her to follow him. Jenna complied obediently but was a little confused when he brought her into the lab and closed the door behind her.

    “Uhm…” she wanted to start but the Ilenian indicated her to be quiet and sit on one of the operation tables. Now a little worried she did what he told her and watched him pick a scalpel and some more tools. “Nemon, what…” she protested and he blinked confused.

    “Have you forgotten? Two cycles.” He replied amused and touched her eye patch. It took her a second.

    “Y- You mean…  _really_?!” Jenna stuttered and flung her arms around his neck when Nemon nodded.

    “Oh, goodness, be patient!” he groaned and laughed. “At least wait until I’ve taken it off and made sure everything’s alright.” He slowed her down indulgent. Well-behaved she sat down again and let the physician operate on the patch. It didn’t make that gross wet sound anymore as he loosened the clamps, instead there was a stinging pain when he pulled out the needles from her scalp, so nasty that Jenna saw some kind of flash. No, not a flash, a light. Carefully and a little out of sync she opened her eyes, closing them again and forced them to stay open. On the left she could see normally, on the right side a bright, blurred spot that continuously grew in details. Nemon took a flashlight and waved it before her eyes.

“Good… the lens is looking good and the cornea has fully closed. Can you see me?” he asked and covered her left eye. Jenna waited, blinking.

    “Not fully… but I can make out your eyes.” She replied hesitating and he exhaled relieved.

    “That is very good news. I think it’s best you rest for today. Oh, and no flying! At least not on your own.” He added and started to tidy up.

Jenna nodded and was about to jump off the table when Nemon raised a finger what made her halt. “While we’re already here and in private: Feorn visited me a few Ti ago, he was up surprisingly  _early_ , apparently he wanted to get to me before you arrived… anyway: I don’t know if there’s anything to what he told me but I have to ask you… are you really planning on having sexual intercourse with him?”

That was so unexpected and blunt that Jenna went beet-red in an instant and could only open and close her mouth dumbfounded. How would he know? Did Feorn actually…

Nemon tilted his head, a crease forming between his brows.

“He asked me to perform a compatibility-check. At first I thought it was one of his jokes but he was absolutely serious about it. Then I wanted to know if he had done something  _stupid_ last night which he denied. Nevertheless I wanted to first talk to you about it. After all it’s your decision to make, not his. And… I can understand if you long for affection… I just wanted to make sure you don’t get talked into anything… after all you’ve been through.” The topic seemed immensely important to Nemon, but at the same time just as awkward what surprised her. Being the Chief Medical Officer she thought it was rather common for him to do these sort of counseling discussions.

Jenna raised her hands; she didn’t really know what to say at this point the more so as she was now rather upset that Feorn had the nerve to talk to the doctor before she got the chance to say anything or even make up her mind!

    “Well,” she huffed, “what can I say… uhm… in the beginning I would’ve never thought I’d get along with Feorn or even return his advances… but…  _ugh_ I don’t know how to explain all of this!” she shrugged, pinching the bridge of her nose. “Feorn is so good to me and it’s obvious he likes me a lot. When the attack happened the other day he was so worried about me… I think he’s in love with me, Nemon.” She said quietly and looked at him so rueful as if she had done something wrong. Nemon leaned against a Mass Analyzer, crossing his arms.

    “And what about you?” he asked softly but she shook her head decisively.

    “I’m not sure I even know what love is anymore and I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to trust myself concerning my feelings. But what I  _do know_  is Feorn would never hurt me… and that I want to feel like I’m actually meaning something to somebody again. Who knows, if he hadn’t shown up I maybe would’ve hooked up with you.” She added laughing.

Nemon’s four eyes snapped open and he cleared his throat bashful.

    “Good grief… I could easily be your grandfather.” He muttered and disposed of the eye patch. Jenna stood up and hugged the Ilenian tightly. After a moment he returned the embrace, a small but tender smile on his face.

    “Thank you for everything you’ve done for me, Nemon. Without your help I would’ve snapped by now. Can you hand me the results of the compatibility-check and not Feorn? I’d like to talk to him about it myself.” She said and Nemon nodded, visibly moved.

    “That is very exemplary of you, of course.”

Before she headed out he administered her a light pain killer to treat the hangover and prescribed her rest and lots of sleep. She assured him she’d take it easy but decided to first pay  _Feorn_ a visit and give him an earful as to why he had already told Nemon about there conversation as if she had already given him her consent or anything.       

          
  


She couldn’t find him anywhere in the hangar until she asked one of the Techs who told her Feorn had gone to the gym with a bunch of pilots. On her way to it she was greeted by all kinds of aliens she never had talked to before. Their faces seemed somehwat familiar but she couldn’t match one single name to any of them. Grumbling she held her throbbing head; she would have to really pull herself together if she wanted to deliver an intimidating and authentic roasting to the Djelb in a moment.

The room serving as the ship’s gym was well-attended when she entered and even here crew members came greeting her. When she asked for Feorn the pilots grinned and pointed to one of the poles in the back he was doing pullups on. Although she had planned to pull this off as cold as ice she stopped for a second, gaping at him.

The muscles of his arms and his sweating back bulged with every pull, and the prominent external ribs contracted as he exhaled what made his shoulders look even broader. One of the spectating pilots staning in the crowd around him noticed Jenna and gave Feorn a nod. When he turned his head and saw her standing there just like that he grinned widely, pulled up all the way once more and landed soft-footed on the ground. The other pilots gathered around the pole and cheered for the next. Feorn took one of the towels and ambled over to her.

    “Hey there, what are you doing here this early? Did Nemon give you the day off because you’re still drunk?” he snickered. Then he tilted his head to the side confused and seemed to scrutinize her. With an astonished sound he reached out, cupping her face in his hands. “Your eye! Does that mean you’re completely recovered now?” he asked excited and couldn’t stop turning her head from side to side to examine her. Jenna grabbed his wrists, staring him down reproachfully.

    “Why did you talk to Nemon already? Don’t you think that I should do that since it’s kind of  _my_  decision what happens to my body? After all you were really stressing that point yesterday.” She hissed under her breath and expected some sort of flimsy excuse or even protest for which she had a fitting response in mind. Yet Feorn immediately lowered his hands, his grin vanished so quickly as if she had cuffed him; he even took a step back.

    “I… I’m sorry, that was wrong of me. Talking to Nemon over your head was disrespectful and I can understand why you’re mad at me, it was not for me to decide, you’re right.” He looked genuinely afflicted. “I’m afraid I can’t make up for this that easily now, can I?” he added rueful, rubbing the back of his head. One of the pilots snickered behind his back and the Djelb cast him an angry snarl with his big ears pressed flatly to his head.

Jenna for one was completely thrown off track by the fact that he had just apologized right away; not to mention he was apparently well aware of where he’d gone wrong and didn’t just agree with her simply because she was mad.

    “But… why did you do it in the first place?” she asked, now a lot more composed and he sighed heavily.

    “I guess I wanted to have the results beforehand as quickly as possible. So we wouldn’t look forward to it all the time and suddenly get the big no.” he interpreted his own actions with a grimace. “Better to get it now than the second before. I don’t think I’d survive an  _anticlimax_ like that.” He laughed and Jenna had to chuckle as well at the bad pun.

It was amazing how she was always laughing in his company even when she was really mad at him. But now she wasn’t even angry anymore. Feorn being so understanding and honest to her and not afraid of admitting his mistakes to her at all made her feel all warm inside. Out of pure need she hugged him.

Feorn almost choked when he stopped laughing abruptly (at least it sounded like that, she wasn’t sure if he could choke like humans did) and wanted to squirm free out of her arms with the stammered excuse that he was all sweaty and gross but she just snuggled up against him, giving him a little peck on the cheek.

    “I don’t care if you’re soaked. Hm, that’s going to be an awkward night if you’re already worried about getting sweaty.” She purred what made him freeze in his flailing. Feorn looked down at her in disbelief.

    “So… you’re  _not_ mad anymore?” he asked cautiously. Jenna grinned.

    “Aw, let’s say a little bit… but I’ll keep it for a special occasion. I catch up with you later, I’m getting back to bed.” She replied jolly and brushed over his chin barbels what caused the Djelb to shudder violently. When she took a glance over his shoulder she caught the other pilots gaping with wide open eyes and mouths. Grinning she turned on her heel and left the gym. Before the door shut behind her she thought she could hear faint jeering.

Back in her quarter it was nice and cool and the cold water from the shower helped soothing her headache just like the syringe Nemon had given her which started to take its full effect just now. Armed with her iPod she crawled under the blanket and smiled goofily at every love song until she fell asleep.

   
  


A few hours later Jenna woke up and already felt better; at least the headache was gone. But the queasy feeling in her stomach was still there, though it could easily just be hunger. Too lazy to get up she rolled over and yawned, grabbing her Chronometer to check the time. It was already late afternoon yet still too early for Car and Reliat to clock off. But maybe Feorn was on the flight deck. Leisurely she put her clothes back on and took the armor-belt with her as well after a brief moment of hesitation.

She found him in the back part of the hangar, tinkering with her jet again, his hands smudged with oil and coolant. Jenna bent down to him and scrutinized his work.

    “Looking good. I have  _no idea_  what you’re doing but it’s looking good.” She greeted him and promptly got slapped in the face by his ear, whipping back reflexively at the sudden noise. Feorn turned his head and laughed at her completely flabbergasted expression.

“Did you just ear-slap me?” she snorted and the Djelb had to hold on to the landing gear to not topple over from laughing. Jenna couldn’t stay serious at such a sight and cracked up herself.

After a few moments Feorn gave an exhausted sigh, still giggling, and stood up groaning. With a merry smile he turned towards her and opened his arms invitingly.

    “You know, I haven’t laughed this much like I have with you in a long time.” He said softly as he hugged her, careful not to grime her with oil.

Jenna cocked a brow in disbelief.

    “Really? I’m having a hard time imagining that.” She opined skeptically but he nodded, cleaning his hands on a towel.

    “It's true. Sure, a few jokes on the side and the pilots can be funny as hell… but since the day I put a scalpel up against your throat I already grin when thinking of you.” The Djelb replied blithely.

    “Charming.” She scoffed, resting her head against his chest and palming over his sides. When she felt the rims of his gills under her hands she got curious and cautiously brushed over one of the red bristles inside. Feorn made a startled sound and recoiled.

    “Oh my god, I’m sorry!” she stammered shocked. “Did I hurt you?!” Jenna asked worried as he shuddered and cringed, grimacing.

    “ _Aah_ , do you know how gross that feels? As if… as if you… no, I can’t describe it, but I bet if I tickled  _your_  lungs it would feel just like that. Ew!” Seeing him jump around like that made her snicker all over again.

    “I’m sorry Feorn… I was just curious.” She apologized once more and he cast her a leery glare.

    “Hmph, just admit it: you’re still holding a grudge. Don’t you dare try this between the sheets!”

Jenna blushed and crossed her arms giving him a cross look; up to now it wasn’t even certain that  _anything_  would happen between them. Feorn noticed her change of mood immediately and flinched guilt-ridden. “Ugh… dammit! Alright, now it’s really starting to be my own fault that you’re tormenting me like that all the time.” He sighed and raised his hands apologetic.

Jenna smiled. You could really tell his excitement. Merciful she wrapped an arm around his middle and they walked a bit.

    “It’s okay to be nervous before your first time. We all know the feeling.” She taunted him. Feorn broke into laughter.

    “ _Fours Swamps_ she’s onto me!” he called out and threw his free arm in the air. Jenna tilted her head intrigued.

    “What are the Four Swamps?” she asked what made Feorn’s ear prick up.

    “You sure you wanna know all about Djelbian mythology? It’s complicated and to be honest kinda boring.” He said doubtfully but she nodded delighted. Although she was living among aliens for quite some time now her curiosity still wasn’t slaked in the least and she would suck in every piece of information like a sponge.

Feorn made a face and walked her over to his jet. Carefully he hoisted her up on the wing and sat next to her.

“Alright then, now where should I start…”, he rubbed his chin. “I guess at the beginning, eh?”

She rolled her eyes.   
  
“Alright, alright, I start. Well… my people believe that Leros, our planet, was once a dusty, dry desert and inhabited by giant, titan-like beings. There were four tribes which were all at enmity with each other. Whenever they got the chance they would destroy the others. But there was one rule: The women of a tribe were not to be harmed ever! One day there was a great battle in which all four tribes clashed. The fight was the worst Leros had ever seen and only a few survived and could make it back to their camps. At night the chiefs consulted with their men and came up with a plan to win the desperate battle: their shape-shifters – back then this was believed to be a very rare gift – should sneak into the enemy’s camp and murder everyone in their sleep.

But none of them knew that the other three tribes all had their own shape-shifters, they were all very cautious to hide the secret of their existence. And so it happened that in the same night everyone was killed save for the four shape-shifters. When morning dawned they realized what happened and slayed each other out of hatred and despair. Where they fell their blood filled four wells.”

Mesmerized Jenna rested her chin in her hands and leaned forward. Feorn gestured while he told his story and dark and bright spots flashed over his skin, accentuating the tale amazingly well.

“The women of the four tribes soon worried about their men and decided to follow them. They didn’t have anything to fear from the other tribes’ men and soon they arrived at the camps. But when they found only corpses they lamented so loudly that the other women heard their cries and joined in after discovering their men had been killed as well. Crying they met by the four fallen shape-shifters, kneeling by their side, joined in their pain. Robbed of their men there was no hope for their kind’s survival, how would they have children now?”

Jenna frowned suddenly.

    “Wait, didn’t some of the women have kids at that time? There must’ve been some boys.” She commented skeptically and Feorn gave her a crooked grin.

    “Aww come on, it’s  _mythology_. I bet there’re some inconsistencies in  _your_  religion as well, right?” he retaliated and she grinned, remembering that she had always thought the Bible was pretty silly. Agreeing she nodded and asked him to continue.

    “The shape-shifters were at the brink of death and asked their wives for forgiveness, in their eyes the realization that they had doomed their people in their blind hatred. They told the women to drink their blood to at least take in the holy power of the shape-shifters so that there would never be another war between the tribes and the great battle wouldn’t be forgotten.

Overtaken by grief the women did what the last men asked them for and drank the blood from the four wells. Every woman took a sip from every well so that four tribes would become one and the blood of all tribes would be united in all of them. Before long the women had to move on to follow the scarce rainclouds. As one tribe they desperately roamed the desert without finding any water until they came back to the battleground where the four shape shifters had died, weak and hungry, to die as well.

But the landscape had changed! The four small wells had turned into four vast swamps, rich with plants and so much water that the sky was reflected in it. The women thanked the fallen warriors for their sacrifice and made camp where the four swamps connected to each other, relieved to have found an oasis to recover. At night a young woman rose from her bed because she heard a voice calling her towards the waterside. But oh, how was she startled when she saw the ghost of her husband, one of the fallen shape-shifters. Wailing she sank to her knees and tried to reach for him. The man looked down at her sorrowful. “My love,” he said quietly, “you will always carry a part of me inside you. Look into the swamp and recognize me in yourself.” The apparition vanished and the woman stared into the swamp. When she thought of her husband’s face, his voice, his gentle hands, her reflections changed and changed until her tears stirred the surface, for the face of her beloved was looking back at her from the water.

Sad and yet solaced she returned to her companions. Aghast they jumped to their feet when she stepped into the camp. Confused she wanted to ask what had startled them so, but as she spoke it was the voice of a man. The other women soon recognized their friend and wanted to know what had happened. She told them about her encounter with the ghost and how she had changed thinking of him. Immediately the other three wives of the shape-shifters tried it out and a moment later four men stood in the women’s camp.

They vowed to keep their people together, as one tribe and to teach their children the shape-shifter’s gift along with the tale of the Great Sorrow and the swamp’s origin that saved their lives.

As time went on the titans’ descendants got smaller and adapted to a life in the rich swamps. And there never again was war or hunger in the great tribe of the Djelb.”

Feorn smiled at her when he had finished and Jenna sighed.   
      
    “What a beautiful story… but also very sad.” She drew little circles on the jet’s wing. “I’d like to see your planet. Someday.” She muttered dreamily and looked up to him.

Feorn’s expression clouded and grew dark, up to the point where he had to avert his gaze.

    “I would’ve liked to take you there…” he replied glumly and with repressed anger in his voice. Confused she chuted closer.

    “What happened?” Actually she already knew what could’ve happened to his home. The same, she feared, was in store for her own planet. Feorn shook his head as if he couldn’t believe it.

    “You know… I didn’t tell you everything about how I became the person I am today, the Dead Star. As a response to my assassination of the invader the Tallest declared war against my people; funny, since they were at war with half the galaxy at this point so it wasn’t really a surprise. Well… our so-called leaders brokered their safe conduct, Leros was conquered and the tribe slaughtered or scattered to the winds. But I didn’t meet my responsibility… I wasn’t even on Leros when they decided to destroy the planet and when I finally did return all that was left of my home was a scorching ball of fire. I know that a whole group of my people managed to escape but I know as well that I will never introduce you to them because they’re avoiding me, they hate me. It’s my fault my planet got destroyed, I… I really would’ve liked to show it to you.” As he talked his voice grew empty and bland. As though he had screamed out all of his grief years ago until there was nothing left of it.

Feorn was still avoiding her gaze. Jenna reached out and touched his arm; he didn’t resist when she pulled him to her, resting her forehead against his. Tears were running down her cheeks in silent condolence. Feorn had lost everything, and he was blaming himself for it. At least she had the certainty that her friends and family were loving and missing her, but he had nobody anymore.

    “It… it wasn’t  _your_ fault.” She whispered hesitating. The Djelb tensed up in her arms why she hastily continued. “They would have attacked Leros either way sooner or later… you… you were just…” she got stuck and he snorted scornfully.

    “What? In the wrong place at the wrong time? If Vort hadn’t fallen because of my doing… if I hadn’t killed the invader in an act of blind rage…  _if_. It doesn’t matter, it can’t be changed anymore.” He freed himself from her embrace but Jenna grabbed his arm again.

    “Feorn I… I’m  _sorry_. I just wish I could do anything for you.” She pleaded helplessly and he smiled to her surprise.

    “You already do… believe me. You’re by far the most caring and gentle being I've ever met. It feels good talking to you… even about the bad things in life. I’m sorry I made you sad. There was a saying on Leros which goes something like this:  _Your face tells who you have met_. It means that Djelb tend to look like the ones that touched their soul over time.” He grinned and wiped a tear from her cheek with his thumb. “Fortunately you don’t look  _that_  bad.”   
  
She boxed his arm and he snickered. Jenna laughed relieved. How Feorn was able to be this buoyant despite all that had happened impressed her deeply. And it helped her to cope with her own demons.

They silently sat together for another while, contented with the other’s mere presence, watching the working techs. Then Jenna jumped off the jet’s wing and invited him to have dinner with her which Feorn gladly accepted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter will have NSFW stuff again... yaaay :D


	40. Live - Pt. 5

### \- 18 – Live

#### Part 5

  
In the mess hall they sat with the other pilots having their meals and Feorn introduced her to everybody. The aviators seemed to be a cheerful lot in general, even the strange, grim looking metal-creatures among them she had encountered before guarding the interrogation room. Interested Jenna asked them all about where they came from, why they mostly consisted of metal and so on. In return she had to answer countless questions about herself and her homeworld.

When she explained that her species didn’t have any real means of space travel at their disposal she caused a big bewilderment under the pilots. How were the humans planning to fight the Irken like this? How did the Tallest even become aware of their planet if not because of active space travel? Jenna then told them about the Curiosity mission and how the Meekrob had sold her planet’s coordinates to the Irken in exchange for their freedom.

One of the metal creatures, they called themselves Steelhunters, at least she understood it like that in Vortian, shook his head upset. He said the Meekrob must’ve had been in real despair otherwise they would’ve never sold another race like this and definitely not such a young one at that.

One Ilenian threw in that they must’ve had a deeper motive, maybe they had found a secret weapon on Earth that could destroy the Empire. But since the humans couldn’t bring it to the Irken the Tallest first had to come to Earth so it could be used against them.

Jenna thought about that while a heated discussion flared up among the pilots what this weapon could be. Suddenly she got reminded of Ria. Didn’t she say something about a weapon? She couldn’t remember at all and when she tried to recall it more persistently the thought just vanished. Feorn noticed that she had gotten awfully quiet and brushed over her back calmingly.

    “Are you alright?” he asked concerned and she started from her thoughts.

    “Oh, sure… I just had to think of the Irken who saved my life.”

All of a sudden it got dead-silent at the table and everyone leaned back incredulous.

    “I find it hard to believe something like that.” The Steelhunter sneered challenging. Feorn hissed at him outraged but Jenna put a hand on his arm. She eyed the Steelhunter named Quor with a sober look. Not angry or hurt but with an almost eerie composure.

    “Quor, I wouldn’t be sitting here if it had been any different. If that Irken had one single functioning Code left in her Pak I wouldn’t even have made it into the arena.” She replied calmly and he gave a clicking sound, obviously a scoffing laugh.

    “Oh, I see; why didn’t you say from the start that she was one of those  _defect_  unit? I admit that they can be quite funny on their own.” He tapped a finger against his helmet what made a bright sound. “But they’re not all that right in the head.” His smug grin slowly disappeared when she just kept looking at him. Sulky Quor crossed his arms but didn’t interrupt her again when she continued.

    “She wasn’t a defect. The Tallest condemn everybody as defect who has a flawed Coding; Ria however didn’t have  _any_  Codes left, therefore she wasn’t defect at all. Before she was made a food drone she had been a scientist, specialized in optimizing the Codes and functionality of their Paks.”

Jenna didn’t notice the silence around her and the entire mess hall listening to her. “She was so brilliant that she managed to overcome the Code’s barrier and nullified them. These Codes are designed to suppress feelings, emotions and even natural urges and thus make the Irken perfect soldiers without compassion or desires. Ria breached these blocks and became free, free to think and feel like you and me, like every self-aware being ought to. The Tallest punished her for that and made her a simple food drone, but they couldn’t take away her free will. I met her on the  _Massive_ , she wanted to help me but then everything went wrong; one of the Tallest attacked her, tortured her for no reason other than his pleasure before my eyes. I couldn’t just stand by and watch such cruelty… I couldn’t allow it.” She had to swallow hard, the memories still hurt. Quor stared at her keen.

    “What did you do?” the Ilenian across from her asked agitated.

Jenna shrugged.

    “I went right for him, didn’t even think about what they’d probably do to me and pushed him away from Ria; the bastard even lost control over his levitation, but I knew I stood no chance.” She gave a dry laughter that quickly broke off as her memories went on. “Then they were over me… tearing my clothes apart… saying I had to restore the honor of…”, Jenna stopped. She was still not sure if she should disclose anything about Set and her relationship and decided to not mention him, she could only guess how the pilots would react to something this  _problematic_.

Was he already dead by now? Hunted down by his own kind?

Her silence was completely overlooked, the others were too shocked as to notice her sudden hesitance. Quor’s jaw dropped with a clank as he gaped at her in utter horror and an appalled muttering could be heard all around. She felt Feorn’s hand around hers, reassuring and protective and she was thankful for his ability to read her body.

Jenna cleared her throat and continued with steady voice:

“I begged them not to do it. I pleaded on my knees for another way to pay for my crime. They threw me into the arena, into a cell, and Ria along with me. She blamed herself for what happened and tried to help me with the fights wherever possible and treated my wounds until I didn’t get up after the second fight. I was done for. My leg had been burned, my back torn open by the Vorn’s claws and I hadn’t eaten or drunk anything in days. Ria… she ripped the Pak off her back and forced me to drink the Pakrit inside. I refused, I didn’t want her to die because of me, she had suffered so much already but she made me drink even the last drop while she was slowly dying next to me. I think I fainted after that… I don’t remember much of the third fight or what happened after Ria died. I do know I regained my strength; even beyond that: The Pakrit evoked powers in me humans can only imagine in their dreams! One thing I do recall is that these powers enabled me to deactivated an explosive collar around my neck. I defeated the Butcher but got severly injured in the fight and was left in a MedBay to die. The… Irken who abducted me eventually returned from a mission and took care of my recovery.” She blinked and angrily wiped over her runny eyes.

It was dead silent and just now she realized that everybody in the room had been listening to her. Uncertain she turned around when Quor cleared his throat (how was a robot able to do that?).

    “Forgive me, I acted like a fool before… I didn’t know… I wouldn’t have…” he stammered but she smiled and shook her head.

    “Forget it; I wouldn’t have believed it myself that Irken are able to express any other emotion than anger. But apparently they all are subjugated by something or someone, even the Tallest.”

That stirred another discussion among the pilots but she kept out of it trying to settle her churning feelings.

Feorn put an arm around her and drew her close to him.

    “You didn’t tell me it was that bad with Ria. You’ve really been through a lot…”, he squeezed her gently. “You’re very brave. And bold, to step between a Tallest and his prey like that without thinking about your own life.” He muttered quietly. Jenna rested her head gratefully against his shoulder.

    “You’ve been through a lot yourself. And yet you’re always so cheerful and gentle.” She replied whereat he looked at her unsmiling.

    “I wasn’t always like that… I was used to death and anguish, at least a bigger part of my life. After all, that wasn’t my first contract as an assassin back then. It had already become a routine and that was my downfall. I had stopped to question the causes of my actions. How many families I’d robbed of their fathers, their husbands… The invader who tricked me showed me quite plainly what I had become because of pure ambition and greed: a fool. A blind, dangerous fool. After realizing that, I changed. The whole time I was drifting through space on my own, left with my own thoughts, helped me to leave the blind killer behind and take responsibility for what I’ve done. But only the community on this ship taught me how to feel again, you know, to act  _normal_ again. And you…” he looked at her with an uninterpretable smile on his lips. Jenna returned the gaze amused and Feorn gave a small sigh.

“Oh I can’t tell what you’ve done already.”

She didn’t blush for once, instead she gently stroked his hand and made the silent decision to give Feorn what he wanted so badly, because she wanted so badly herself to be loved by this man and to love again with his aid. Her desire for the closeness of another being was simply too great.

   


Feorn stayed with the pilots while Jenna took her leave to get some sleep. But first she wanted to swing by Nemon and ask him if he had any news on the test results. She found him sitting at his desk like always, pored over a datapad. He looked up and smiled as she came closer.

    “I figure you’re here for this.” He handed her the datapad and she skimmed it. But her eyes quickly got stuck on the sentence “Not compatible” standing out in red.

Disappointed she wanted to give it back but Nemon tapped on the line. “This right here means you two can’t beget any viable offspring. None, to be exact. Since I know that you don’t lay hard-shelled eggs the fertilized ovocyte would just get discarded with your next period, should it even be suitable to get inseminated by Djelb spermatozoa in the first place.”

That reminded Jenna that she would have her period somewhat sooner or later and it made her panic a little since she was quite sure she didn't pack enough tampons, or any for that matter; maybe Nemon could help her with that as well although that would make for an awkward conversation.

He continued in the meantime: “Apart from that you two are completely compatible, no intolerance of any amino acids or glycoproteins. Nevertheless you should be careful with the poison fangs, I haven’t yet analyzed what the venom would cause in your body or how your immune system could react to his… to the contact with him. Just… just be careful and take it  _slowly_ , okay? If allergies or reactions do occur you both come to me right away, understood?” He gave her a stern look and she nodded quickly.

    “Don’t worry, Nemon. And thanks again!” she handed him the datapad and left the MedBay.

Back in the hallway she stopped indecisive and tried to figure out what to do now. Return to the mess hall? No way, she didn’t want to give the pilots more occasions to gossip than they probably already did. Should she just wait in front of his door? Then she remembered her Chronometer and almost smacked her forehead. Quickly she typed in a message to Feorn, asking him to come see her when he could.  

Then she ran back to her quarter, her thoughts already in disarray. First she wanted to take a shower! Maybe shave her legs? But how? Hectically she rummaged around in her stuff to hopefully find something that would help her while she couldn’t stop thinking. Should she explain to him where the human body was most sensitive or was it better to let him find out himself? And why exactly was it bound to happen today?!

She was so occupied with overthinking that she didn’t notice time running. Suddenly it knocked at her door and she froze. Feorn couldn’t possibly be already here, right? When she opened the door he was of course already there, smiling slightly confused.

    “You rang?” he said and laughed amused.

    “Yeaah, I did, I … so uhm… come on in.” her voice was trembling faintly and her heart was beating so hard that she feared to flatline.

Feorn slowly folded his ears back.

    “What’s wrong? Did something happen?” he asked worried while she tried without success to clean up the mess in the tiny room, which he watched silent at first. At one point he had enough; gently but determined he took her hands in his and pulled her towards him. “Jenna? What's with you all of a sudden? You look like something scared you to death.”

She looked up to him and didn’t know what to say, how to say it.

    “I… I was at Nemon’s…” it was only a whisper but his eyes snapped open.

    “You… because of…  _and_?” a few green spots appeared on his nose and now she had to smile as she nodded. Feorn let go off her hands and stroked over his head, the freckles vanished in an instance. He was looking pretty pale in general all of a sudden. Jenna fumbled with her top.

    “So…  _now_  what?” she asked insecure, his alarmed reaction the last he had expected.

Feorn took a step back, his gaze wandering back and forth between her and the door.

    “I… do you want to at all? Well I… I really don’t want to press you. I’m relieved to know it’s possible but only you can decide and I really don’t want you to…”

When she still just stood there, stumped for an answer with big round eyes Feorn turned and wanted to exit the door but she quickly grabbed his hand.

    “Stay! Please?” she breathed hastily, almost scared. Halting he stayed and looked over his shoulder, the ear facing her pricked up attentively. Jenna took a deep breath to calm down. Why was she so nervous all of a sudden? And why was she now tongue-tied again? His eyes widened in baffled realization.

    “You’re scared.” He simply stated. She shook her head fiercely.

    “No, it’s just that… I don’t know…” she stuttered but was interrupted by a kiss. Feorn put one hand on her nape to pull her closer, the other one gently catching her hand. He extended the kiss until she relaxed a bit, putting one hand on his cheek herself and thumbing over his prominent cheekbone.

Carefully Feorn parted from her again and she exhaled shakily, first slowly then firmly nodding. “Yes; yes I am scared. What if it doesn’t work out? What if we’re too  _different_  after all? Nemon said everything was fine… but…”. He broke her stammering with a silent chuckle what threw her entirely off track.

“What are you laughing for now?” she asked genuinely confounded whereas the Djelb eyed her with an affectionately amused look and shook his head.

    “You don’t know how we should  _start_ , is that it? You’re worrying that we both, two adult beings, can’t work out the basic principles of reproduction?”

That put it straight and Jenna laughed out; he was right. However that only helped a little with her nervousness.

    “What if I don’t appeal to you…” she muttered. Feorn hissed angrily at that and cupped her face in his hands, his eyes glowing red and golden as he spoke:

    “Never. Say. That. Again. Don’t even think it! You do appeal to me. Very much, really.” He kissed her again, longingly. “You’re beautiful. You’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever met.”

Another kiss, he parted her lips with his tongue and touched hers. Jenna sighed in surprise. She felt a sting inside her that she had lastly felt with Daniel. It felt good, it felt natural and she returned the kiss just as passionate.

    “Alright… I’m talking bullshit.” She mumbled as they slowly broke away. Feorn grinned at her, he was breathing faster, excited just like her. For a moment they just looked at each other, beholding each other in never ending fascination. Finally Feorn took her hand and settled on the bed. When she hesitated he opened his arms.

    “We don’t have to get right to it today, alright? I don’t want you to be nervous. Excited, yes, but not insecure. I want you to trust me. We can slowly get used to each other.” He told her softly.

Jenna nodded and sank into his arms.

“You know, I have a little advantage over you because of my thermal vision… which is why I don’t worry too much about finding…  _sensitive_ spots on your body. The problem is just… you’re so delicate, so…  _soft_. I’m afraid I might hurt you by accident, or even bite you. That’s my biggest concern.” He confessed calmly and laughed quietly.

His laugh was soothing. It made all of this seem less like a fateful night but took away the scare of the unknown. In her mind Jenna scolded herself for her stupid fear. She had cheated death on multiple occasions already and now she was scared of having sex? She hadn’t been afraid of Set after a short while and he was a thousand times more dangerous than Feorn in this moment.

Jenna watched the Djelb searchingly. He smiled and was patiently waiting for her turn. It seemed he could sit like this the whole night without being particularly disappointed, apparently the good news alone had made him happy.

She snickered.

    “Oh okay, just laugh at me then…” he said played sore and she only laughed louder.

    “I was just thinking… when the test results made you this happy already you could easily get a heart attack if this really works out.” She explained what earned her a side glance.

    “I knew it… you are still mad at me if you want to kill me on the probably best night of my life…” he grumbled but she shrugged with a grimace.

    “It’s more likely going to be awful… but practice makes perfect is what we say on Earth.”

This however made him grin widely.

    “Oh really? You’re already planning to repeat this although we haven’t even started the first round?”

She rolled her eyes and hoisted herself up to kiss him. Feorn smiled under her lips. “Alright, say something sarcastic and she’ll go crazy for you; noted.” He mumbled impishly. Jenna huffed, taking his face into her hands to kiss him wildly. Her tongue jabbed dangerously often against his fangs but nothing happened even though she was kissing him so stormily.

The Djelb gave a surprised growl and wrapped his arms around her. Then he joined in, pressing his tongue against hers and fighting back until he was in her mouth. Jenna carefully bit the tip of his tongue what caused a deep, throaty hiss. Abruptly she broke away and stared at him.

    “Did… did you just  _moan_?” she asked baffled and green freckles scurried over his cheeks again in a Djelbic blush.

    “Yeah, so?” he shot back, his voice a pitch higher than usually, “Djelb only bite to kill so I’m not exactly  _used_  to something like that, alright? I don’t know where you learned this but it should be forbidden.” The last words were a husky purr as he drew her closer again, his subharmonics vibrating against her chest. Jenna grinned, pushing him back until he was lying on his back. “Oookay… which one of us was the nervous one again? ‘Cuz I feel a slight panic attack coming on.”

She silenced him completely, sealing his lips with another kiss. Feorn let his hands travel over her back, to the hem of her top and pulled it up. She allowed it and was busier with exploring him. Gingerly she felt up to the big ears which twisted and turned under her touch, nestling into the palm of her hand. With a grin she scratched Feorn behind them like she had her dog. This educed a blissful hum from him and he cradled her. Jenna broke the kiss and caught her breath for a second, noticing the barbels on his lower jaw and under his chin. Softly she blew against them.

He trembled underneath her and stopped in his attempt to pull the top over her head. Completely quiet he laid there, eyes closed, while she carefully pulled the thin appendages through her fingers, rubbing them gently. His torso heaved faster as she brushed over the sensitive feeler with her lips finally taking one in her mouth.

Feorn reared up under her, grabbing her so hard Jenna shouted startled. His eyes snapped open and he let go off her in an instant.

    “I’m sorry! Jenna did I hurt-“, he called out terrified but she put him off.

    “No, I was just startled. Did I hurt  _you_?!” she asked in return and carefully rubbed over his chin apologetic. The Djelb shuddered at the touch, his fingers digging into her sides.

    “A little… no, wait… it did feel somewhat  _good_ …” he laughed and sat up so that she came to sit on his lap. “It’s just that I never would’ve thought to take these things into my mouth… our teeth aren’t exactly blunt.” He brushed over the barbels himself. “Actually… that was  _really_  good…”

Then he cast her a glance that had a shiver running down her spine. “And now it’s my turn, human.”

With a playful hiss he rolled Jenna on her back and bent over her. Curiously he tilted his head to the side and scanned her body, she saw it in the way the pit organs, she falsely had taken for nostrils, widened. “There’s a lot of you to explore… but I think I’ll start with the obvious.”

At her alarmed gulp he grinned only wider. “Don’t worry, not the  _obvious_  obvious.” He kissed her lightly and stroked over her waist, resting one arm next to her head and rolled over on his side to watch her. His free hand rucked up her top. They kissed more; she felt his warm, rough hand traveling over her belly up to her breast where it suddenly stopped when he noticed her bra.

Feorn slowly opened his eyes halfway. “How much clothes do you humans wear  _exactly_?” he asked her half annoyed half disbelieving. Jenna grinned as she sat upright to take off her top. Quietly he watched her, reaching out to caress her leg. Fascinated he eyed her bra and was quite swift in finding out how to open it.

Then he leaned back again, a smile on his lips.

“You’re really beautiful…” he muttered awestruck. She took his hand and put it on her neck. With eyes closed he listened to the beating of her heart until she lay down beside him again, running her lips over the rim of his ear. Feorn sighed, letting his hand wander over her naked body and finally palmed over her breast. Jenna flinched when the coarse skin brushed her nipple but when he grabbed her bolder she leaned in on the touch. He neither pinched her skin nor hurt her; almost carefully he caressed her, massaged, felt and tickled her with feather-light touches until she had goosebumps all over her body and giggled.

Jenna relaxed more and more under his gentle hand, now letting her own hands explore moer of his body, however meticulous not to put another finger into his gills. She felt how soft the skin was between his ribs, how firm his muscles. Tenderly she bit the soft skin of his jawline what caused a true explosion of pigments. Encouraged by that she pushed herself up to reach his ears with her lips.

Feorn pressed his face against her chest when she ran her teeth lightly over the sensitive shell and he uttered those throaty hisses again, his hand stopped, all of his senses were suddenly focused on what she was doing. Playfully she gave the inside of his ear a flick with her tongue and heard him moan. Her fingers felt for the feelers on his head and rubbed their bases.

    “Shit…” Feorn gasped and exhaled shakily, a hot stream of air against her waist. Occupied with her affectionate torture Jenna suddenly sensed a cold tongue licking over her nipple and panted for breath surprised. “Heh, think you’re the only one who plays dirty, hm?” he purred and took it into his mouth to nibble on it. Startled by the thougt of poison fangs she wanted to stop him but he took her hand in his and squeezed it reassuring. “It’s okay, I’ll be careful…” he breathed and let his tongue circle her pap. Jenna sighed, her breath turned shallow while Feorn leaned a bit more over her to reach her other breast.

Her head sank back on the mattress and she surrendered herself to this luscious feeling. Her fingers were stroking his feelers distracted what caused a shudder from time to time. At one point she grabbed his hand and directed it down. Inquiring he looked up to her and she nodded.

    “We can go further when we’re already at it, if you want to.” She said quietly, a soft, aquiver trembling in her voice.   
Feorn cocked a brow.  
    "Are you really okay with it?" he wanted to know softly and she nodded with a smile. The Djelb followed her invite more than happy, sat up and pulled on her pants. Jenna lifted her hips to help getting rid of that annoying barrier. He spotted her panties and broke into gales of laughter. Jenna joined in and raised her hands. “What can I say; I should’ve warned you, maybe? I mean, if you're that averse to clothing.”

Feorn caught himself and sighed.

    “I mean, they look really pretty, but I’m afraid they have to go, too.” He said and carefully pulled them down to not rip the laces. Then he just eyed her for a moment. Amused she watched him palming over her thighs, her hipbones and stopping at her belly button. A roguish grin played upon his lips as he bent over her to kiss her tummy. She chuckled at his tongue tickling her belly button.

“I’m afraid you got the completely wrong spot.” She teased him and regretted it immediately. Well, actually she didn’t regret it at all; Feorn chuted all the way down until he was kneeling in front of the bed, grabbing her hips and pulling her to the edge, all the while giving her a glare that sent shivers down her spine.

    “I think I know  _exactly_  where the right spot is.” He returned with his voice hoarse from arousal. Her heart skipped a few beats as he lowered his head and ran his tongue over just that spot. Jenna gasped for air and clawed into the sheets, every flick of his tongue went through her body like electric shocks. Panting she arched her back, Feorn reached around her legs and dug his fingers into her sides, holding her in place. Her gasps turned into a whimper when he let go of her clit to gently bite the inside of her thigh. She tried to catch her breath but Feorn took it right back between his lips and sucked on it. Breathless she threw her head back, clutching at him and feeling the pleasure inside her boiling into a burning fire as he lapped and teased her, sucking on her labia. She wouldn’t last long like this.

Tantalizingly slow he let go off her and slid up again. Jenna met him halfway, cupping his face in her hands, pulling him closer to kiss him. Feorn pushed one hand between her legs to rub her clit; eager she pressed against his hand and into every motion until she felt something between them. Surprised she looked down and couldn’t hide a grin.

    “I was wondering when he’d show up.” She giggled. Feorn looked downright offended but she kissed him soothingly and shoved a hand down his body until she could grab his cock which was already swollen hard and throbbing hot in her hand. The Djelb sucked the air in between his teeth and buried his fingertips into her back. “That wasn’t supposed to be an insult… on the contrary.” She whispered in his ear and slowly moved her hand. He moaned quietly, remembered his own hand and returned her caress incited.

Jenna rested her head at his shoulder when he entered her pussy with two fingers and immediately found the other right spot. “Fe-orn…” she panted, kissing and pumping him and scooched down until he realized what she had in mind.

He hoisted himself up to get in front of her and clasped her hips to pull her closer. Then he slowly entered her warmth, pulled back and sank in a bit deeper. Jenna was touched by his cautiousness but that was not what she wanted right now. She arched her back and took him in completely; Feorn gasped, taken by surprise, and had to fight for his composure for a second.

    “Are you sure, you-“, he interposed halting, still thoughtful of her consent.

    “Damnit Feorn, take me! Now.” She hissed impatient and rocked against him. With a growl he rolled his hips forward and pushed deep into her. Jenna moaned loudly, digging her nails in his arms as he forgot all caution and indulged in his own pleasure. He lifted her legs over his arms and bent closer over her, burying one hand in her hair to pull her close enough to kiss. His breath was a husky panting burning on her stomach when he thrust harder. “Oh god… yes… ahn!” Jennagasped and wrapped her arms around his neck with a whine, wanted him to push her over the edge. Feorn changed the angle a bit, quickening his pace and she felt the hot ball of fire inside her convulsing, the friction so right, oh so good...

All of a sudden she came, muffling a scream on his shoulder, and clutching at him, her fist punching his back. After two last thrusts Feorn came with a trembling moan, his teeth sank dangerously deep into the skin of her shoulder but didn’t pierce it as he collapsed over her, resting his weight on his knees and elbows to not crush her.

Jenna left her arms wrapped around his neck and sank back exhausted; just now she noticed that they were soaked with sweat, their panting the only sound around them. Feorn was breathing heavily and embraced her, gently kissing her neck. 

For half an eternity they lay locked in embrace like this, she was lazily stroking over his back while slowly catching her breath. At first she thought Feorn had passed out but when she turned her head she looked into red-golden eyes, watching her dreamily.

    “And you said it would be awful.” He muttered in a weak attempt to tease her but he was way too satisfied to make it sound mean. Jenna pecked him on the forehead.

    “And it was. Awfully good.” She added winking as he was already widening his eyes in shock. Sighing she snuggled up against him, her fingers gently brushing over his ears.

    “Well now I’m relieved…” he replied and rolled over pulling her along with him. Jenna sluggishly let herself get pulled on his chest and looked down at his body curiously; his penis had become flaccid now, like that of a human and the sight confused her.

    “Wait, how come I haven’t noticed it before?” she asked baffled whereat Feorn chuckled.

    “Ah it’s got something to do with muscle contraction… if your species doesn’t have that I kinda understand now why you wear clothes all the time. That  _would_  look pretty funny.” He snorted as he imagined it and let his fingertips run over her side, the other arm crossed behind his head to look at her. “While we’re currently at the interracial comparison: How did I do compared to your fellow human males?”

She felt a grin curling up her lips. The question was quite straightforward, which didn’t surprise her, but still she felt more amused than annoyed by it.

    “Not bad for your first time… it all came a bit  _slap-bang_  but you did perform exemplary.” She answered honest and he grimaced.

    “Ugh, you sound like Nemon.”

Jenna boxed his arm laughing and got up, happy to step into the bathroom and finally take that shower. Feorn was reluctant to let her go but sighed content when she gave him a kiss as pacification.

She felt good standing under the running water. More than good, she felt secure once again. All of her nervousness and tension drained away, allowing a warm sensation to lull her troubled mind; all of a sudden those horrible events seemed unreal and like a bad dream.

When she returned she found Feorn busy with her iPod, apparently he hadn’t quite figured out yet how this small piece of tech was operated. She smirked, gently took it from him and put one of the earbuds into her ear while scrolling through the playlists to find a calm one. Feorn wrapped his arms around her again, pulling the blanket over them and leaned back against the wall, the other earplug disappeared in his big ear.

Without realizing it Jenna sang quietly along to herself until Feorn nudged her, asking her to translate the lyrics for him. The sudden memory of Set transmitted a sting of guilt and for a moment she couldn’t react to the question.

    “Hey… are you okay?” His worried voice jerked her from the thought; Jenna shook her head fiercely to get rid of the depressing image of what Set would probably do if he was still alive and were to find her. That reaction only made Feorn pull her closer, believing he had done or said something wrong. “Never mind… let’s just go to sleep, alright?” he hummed softly and lay down, one arm under her head and the other around her body like a protective shield. Jenna swallowed the lump in her throat and kissed him tenderly and full of gratefulness before snuggling up against him, her legs entwined with his.

    “I’m glad you stayed…” she muttered sleepily and heard him chuckle quietly as she fell asleep.                                                                                                                                                                                                                 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *looks at when the last sex-scene took place* It's been 84 years...
> 
> Jokes aside I had a ton of fun writing this chapter!! Especially in comparison to the sex-scenes with Set. Sex with Set is serious business and rough and ouch while with Feorn, you'll have a lot more laughing and gentle touches x3
> 
> hope you enjoyed! Next chapter has shit going down all over the place... can you guess why?


	41. Gatecrasher

### \- 19 - Gatecrasher  
 

 

 _4 hours later –_ Rebellion  _– Jenna’s quarter_

_15 days and 3 hours after abduction_

 

Someone shook her by the shoulder. It was sudden and started her from her sleep. Jenna opened her eyes confused, her freshly recovered eye blinking at the light before she recognized Feorn staring at her with a strangely out of place expression. Why was he looking so nervous?

    “What?” she asked drowsy and he jumped up handing her a bunch of clothes.

    “Get up, we’re under attack.” He just replied tersely and she was awake in an instant.

    “By whom? And since when?” her limbs were still stiff from sleeping and wouldn’t obey her as she quickly squeezed into a pair of leggings and reached for the shirt. Feorn simply shrugged and waited by the door impatiently until she was done putting on her armor-belt. Swiftly she bound her hair together and hurried after him as he already bolted out into the hallway.

Soon they parted ways; Feorn headed towards the hangar while she entered the MedBay where Nemon gave her a first aid kit along with the order to get to the hangar immediately; one of the pilots had been hit and was already on his way back to the landing zone. Reliat accompanied her to organize the first aid record yet he was also clueless who the attacker was or if there was more than one.

When they arrived at the hangar it was a rush left and right. The  _Rebellion_  had changed its course to come the shot jet’s way and more fighters prepared to escort it. Feorn wasn’t out there and her heart did a relieved jump, with arms crossed he stood among the other pilots tensely watching a big screen showing the raging battle recorded by the outboard cameras. He didn’t notice her and she ran after Reliat who positioned himself right next to the flight lock to receive the jet. A group of ground crew members stood by armed with hoses and tanks Jenna assumed to be fire extinguisher. Although the Ilenian was calling for her she turned around once more to get a look at the fight on screen.

Her startled scream went unheard, her heart seemed to collapse just like her entire insides.

The rebels had encircled two enemy ships, both of them Irken Spacerunners. One of them took turns firing at the jets and the other ship whereas the second Irken vessel ignored the smaller fighters around it, relentlessly focusing its fire solely on the bigger Irken ship.

Set’s ship.

Jenna could only stare as parts of the other ship’s hull broke away from the bombardment, a big gaping breach already blasted into one side with the remaining oxygen shooting out in a bright ball of fire that got immediately extinguished as it entered the void. The jets kept firing at both ships while they tried to push the much bigger Spacerunners towards an iced moon in close proximity. Suddenly the second Irken vessel exploded, one of the pilots most’ve finally gotten through to the engines. The detonation was strong enough to through Set’s ship off course whereon it got caught in the moon’s gravitation and slowly gained speed. The engines failed with a last stuttering spark, leaving the ship defenseless against the gravitational pull.

Her body reacted on its own, out of a strong impulse. Jenna dashed forward, shoving the by standing pilots out of her way and activated her suit. The armor encased her body in a flash of green and now some of the crew members turned around to the noise of her boots stomping on the ground. Feorn was the only one who realized what she was up to and tried to stop her but she was too fast for him; the suit’s servos made her fly across the room until she finally stood before her own jet, frantically pulling on the tarp. She heard alarmed shouts behind her and jumped on the wing, almost bending the canopy trying to get it to open faster.

Her thoughts were racing, her hands working on their own and a single, desperate scream was driving her: I’ve got to save him!

The jet started with a deep roar, everybody jumped out of the way as she darted for the air lock and only set the break when she almost crashed into it.

    “Are you out of your  _mind_?!” the Tech inside the control room shouted into the fleet comm with cracking voice. Jenna made the engines roar in response.

    “Jenna… be  _reasonable_.” Tork; he sounded tense and tried to calm her. “You have no idea how to fight with a jet and yours isn’t even  _armed_ ; leave it to the pilots!”

    “Tork… open the lock. I have to do this. You don’t understand what this is about!” she replied strained and felt her despair rising with every second. She could see the ship from up here, glowing red as it entered the atmosphere. Every second was a matter of life and death now.

    “No, I don’t.” he conceded resigning and suddenly the lock lowered. Jenna didn’t even wait for it to get down completely but immediately shot into it as soon as the jet fit through. The lock was closed again and the drop lock opened. At breakneck speed she let  _Light Wing_  screw-dive into the void, the stars at the edge of her vision distorted into long streaks as she pulled up and shot right through the group of fighters that had retreated to keep an eye on the crashing ship. Her thrust was carrying her quickly towards the moon and she ignored the startled screams coming over the comm as she accelerated even more, pushing the jet’s engines to the brink of overheating.

    “Jenna?!” Feorn’s appalled shout was more a disbelieving question. “What the hell are you doing? Get out of there, you can’t fight him alone!” he was yelling into the comlink but she ignored him. “Jenna I’m begging you, turn around, he will kill you!” he groaned when she didn’t give an answer. There was someone talking in the background, wrought-up voices and something she didn’t catch before Feorn was back, his voice breathy.

“Tork says he’s going to lock you up if you don’t turn around this instant! That’s not worth it, right? Risking your life just to get revenge… he’ll die either way, there’s no way he could survive a crash like that, you don’t have to do this!” he was pleading now. He knew exactly whose ship that was.

    “Feorn… this is something else, I have to do it. I’m sorry” She muttered into the mic, the jet’s roaring paralyzing her. She didn’t notice the tears running down her cheeks, nearly blurring her vision, and kept her eyes fixed on her target. She had almost reached the ship, her jet incandescing from the atmosphere, glowing like a flare. The instruments went crazy over their warning messages but she didn’t slow down. Jenna shot past the Spacerunner, got in front of it and decelerated by a thousandth. All her senses were sharpened, every fiber of her body taut like a steel rope and her hands cramped around the cyclic when the crashing ship hit the back of her jet like a jackhammer, pushing her down along in its fall.

Immediately she lit the Glider’s engines, adjusting the entire power on their thrust. The engines screeched deafening from the insane strain, the alarms’ wailing turned into a maddening choir and she thought she could hear every screw and every nut break yet the jet withstood it all miraculously. When Jenna checked her speed and noticed it slowly decreasing she gave a triumphing shout and tried to get even more thrust on the gliders. But all of a sudden she broke through the blanket of clouds and saw the moon’s iced surface racing towards her.

She screamed frustrated, her right hand clutching the cyclic, her left hovering over the engine controls. Like a cowboy during high noon she waited, counting the miles shrinking on the altimeter, trembling. Then the ground was there and she reacted, activating the main thrusters and let the jet roll out from under the spaceship. There was an ear-splitting sound of metal scratching over metal when one of her wings grazed the ship’s hold before she broke free and bolted away towards the sky as Set’s ship crashed into the moon’s surface, raising a giant cloud of snow and ice blocking her view.

Her fighter was barely responding to her commands and she would’ve nearly crashed herself trying to land it as close to the crash site as possible.

Finally she touched down and jumped out of the cockpit, taking in air to shout. Only there was no air, just a horrible, inexorable burning in her nose and windpipe that was eating away into her lungs like gaseous acid. Terrified Jenna clutched at her throat and her eyes widened in horror as she tried desperately to get back into her jet. Her boot slipped on the smooth metal and she sprawled on the wing. Suddenly she heard a bright bleep coming from her suit and noticed a blinking button on her chest. Quickly she pushed it. Some sort of bubble shot from her armor’s collar and engulfed her head like a tight fitting mask. Jenna tried to breathe again and was rewarded with a cold stream of air, numbing her burned windpipe. Coughing she slid off the wing and sank up to her knees into the snow.

She trudged her way through the deep snow, never losing sight of the burning wreckage.

Later Tork would tell her about the ravenous snow-worms living under the moon’s surface and devouring everything that would dare to set foot on it; but for the moment she could only think of getting to Set in time than even consider possible dangers. The thought of him probably breathing this toxic atmosphere as well made her run even faster until she was crawling up the crater his ship’s crash had formed on her hands and knees. Her intakes were only a hoarse panting and she had no idea how long the suit’s oxygen would last or if she would even be able to make it back to her jet with Set and if that jet was still capable of flying; but she cast those thoughts aside as well for now.       

Finally her hand slammed against the ship’s cold hull. Jenna looked up and around but couldn’t find any hatch or other entrance at first until she noticed a crack in the metal that had the warm indoor air stream out in a white cloud and she managed to squeeze through it.

It was pitch black inside the ship and the faint light from outside soon left her as she made her way deeper into the wreck. There were sparking cables hanging from the ceiling. No, that actually wasn’t the ceiling but the wall of a hallway she had ended up in! To her left Jenna could make out the floor, to the right the smooth white of the ceiling. Set’s ship must’ve crashed on its side and Jenna took a few precious seconds to orientate. She had ended up in the lower lab, she could tell by the spilled liquids and smashed glass tubes and all the other clutter she had to fight through to reach the door which was a good two meters up now.

With aid of her suit she jumped high enough to grab the door frame and her fear gave her even more strength as she moved parts of the wall and other scrap away to reach the elevator that she could simply crawl through to get to the command level. The further she got to the next floor the hotter it got in the shaft and she was caught in smoke as soon as she opened the elevator’s door. Something was on fire! Quickly she looked for the fire source and spotted it in the hangar. Since it didn’t hinder her direct path to the Bridge she ignored it and ran past it. She found the door to the dark Command Bridge broken up and the front window splinted but not cracked which meant the room probably wasn’t filled with toxic gas, so she turned off the suit’s oxygen system.

Jenna frantically looked around in the dark room without really seeing anything. The random flickering of the burst console made her shadow dance eerily in the vast darkness.

    “Set!” she screamed, her voice cracking from the pain it caused to shout and she fell into a fit of coughing right after it. When she had caught herself again she listened closely. Nothing, only the sizzling of electricity and the shrill howl of the siren. “Set! Where are you!? Fucking hell,  _answer me_!” she yelled piercingly, close to desperation, her tears once again blurring her vision. Blindly she jumped down, the glass gave a warning crunch under her boots as she landed and immediately lost her balance slipping on the smooth surface. Uncontrolled Jenna rolled down the sloping pane until one of the supporting pillars broke her fall ungently. Groaning and hissing she slumped on her back and opened her eyes. A few shards of broken glass were digging painfully into the soft material between her armor plates and blood was running out of a cut in her eye. When she slowly wiped it away she thought seeing a silhouette above her. Startled she jumped to her feet and activated the adjustment panel on her palm. The small light was like a torch in the darkness; the view made her cry out.

Set was hanging lifelessly over the railing that used to circle the gangway around the Bridge. He was bleeding from multiple wounds and one arm appeared to be broken, standing off in an unnatural angle. Jenna's scream hadn't even make him flinch.

“No… no, no,  _no_!” she breathed raucous, taking a step closer and lifting her hand to touch him. As she brushed over his antennae the Irken shuddered and gave a small groan. He was still alive. Jenna wailed out of relief.

“Okay… okay, I’m sorry! I’m sorry for what I’ve done. Please, please don’t die!” she repeated this over and over again while she tried as carefully as possible to pull him down from the railing, collapsing under his weight when he suddenly fell. Set was barely breathing and she could hear a rattling in his chest, apparently he did already breathe the caustic atmosphere. Luckily he had put on his own armor before passing out and thus Jenna only had to push the same button like on her own suit to activate the breathing apparatus. But she had no idea if their oxygen would last all the way back to her jet, especially now that she would have to drag the Irken along who was almost weighing twice as much as her.

Still the newly lit spark of hope stayed within her as she grabbed Set under his arms.

 

Afterwards Jenna wouldn't be able to tell how she managed to carry Set all the way up the wall towards the door and the entire distance through the ship and the snow towards her fighter without collapsing from exhaustion or dying from the toxic atmosphere or getting eaten up by the snow-worms.

Panting she sat in her jet, cramped up against Set who was lying motionlessly in the seat, and rested her forehead against the dashboard catching her breath. Suddenly the comm crackled.

    “Jenna? Jenna, are you there?! We’re reading your signal again. Say something!” Tork ordered her sharply and angry but just as worried. She nodded. And then she remembered that he couldn’t see her.

    “I’m alright… I’m… I’m here.” She answered croaking, her voice sounding so hoarse as though she had been breathing in the acid again on her way back again. Her heart was frantically pounding in her chest and she felt lightheaded. Tork stayed silent and waited for more. Jenna cleared a throat – big mistake! – and spat blood in the legroom, grunting with pain. “Commander… I won’t ask pardon for what I’ve done. I will try to explain why I had to do it… given that I may come aboard again.” All at once she started to tremble in every limb from fear. What if the rebels were to cast her out? What if she would be left in this toxic ice-hell? At least she would die with Set then…

    “I can’t wait to hear what brought you to this incredibly  _stupid_  act.” The Vortian suddenly growled and she raised her head so quickly that her neck crunched dryly.

    “Y- Yes, Sir…” she grated disbelieving, wiped her eyes and started up the jet’s engines. Then she stopped. “I… I’m bringing the Irken.” She added quietly and thought at first Tork had cut the comm.

    “ _What_?” he asked coldly and for a moment she was sure he would leave her to die on this moon.

Jenna took a careful breath and tried to sound as composed as possible.

    “I’m bringing the Irken along with me. He’s the one who abducted me. I wanted to save him, Commander.”

At her confession Tork snapped something to someone in the background. When he spoke again he sounded so contemptuous that she had to swallow to not burst into tears.

    “I think our conversation is going to be a little longer once you’re back on board. And to make one thing clear: The Irken gets locked up! Provided you can convince me of why I shouldn’t just have him  _executed_ the second he sets one foot on my ship, do you understand me, human?”

She could only utter a silent “Yes”; her throat felt too constricted when she realized what she had done. At least her jet had gotten so slow from her harsh handling that she was done crying when she arrived at the landing pad.  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Set is back, baby! Oh boy I hope he's in a good mood when he wakes up don't you think?


	42. Gatecrasher - Pt. 2

### \- 19 - Gatecrasher 

#### Part 2

  
Jenna saw the group of armored soldiers waiting for her and swallowed hard as she landed the fighter. Set hadn’t moved at all yet and she didn’t find the courage to touch him, afraid he was already dead. But when the canopy opened and two guards tried to pull the wounded Irken out of the jet he groaned in pain whereat they let go immediately to aim their weapons at him. Jenna interposed herself between Set and the soldiers, stammering some apology while her eyes darted from Set to the guards, ready to defend him with her own life if need be even though she didn’t want to. She had to.

There was a silent exchange of looks between the two Vortians before they stepped aside and observed how she struggled to pull the much heavier Irken out and on the wing and finally on the ground what probably caused him just as much pain as the two soldiers. When she was done she stayed kneeling next to him for a moment trying to catch her breath and didn’t dare to stand up. She didn’t want to see those cold and condemning looks, at least not right now. First she would have to make sure that Set was locked up  _alive_  in a cell.

Suddenly someone touched her arm and Jenna flinched terrified. From the corner of her eye she recognized Nemon squatting down beside her, checking Set’s life signs with swift movements.

    “I’m not going to condemn you for this.” He whispered so quietly she thought she had misheard. “I can imagine why you did it. But we both know at what cost.” Nemon sounded sad and tired, that was all. He stood up and waved at the two guards, Jenna slowly came to her feet but kept her eyes to the floor, defensively wrapping her arms around her chest when another guard approached her gesturing harshly with his rifle to follow him. All around her the ground crew members and pilots were muttering more or less muted curses and threats. She wanted to take a last checking look at Set but her eyes crossed Feorn’s gaze. He was staring back at her shocked and so hurt that she had to quickly look away. A paralyzing coldness clawed around her heart and it wasn’t the ice on her armor.

The guard took her directly to Tork, yet not to the Bridge but right to the Commander’s quarter. She was nearly thrown into the room and took the rough treatment without protest.

    “Hand over your armor, human. Captain’s orders.” He snarled and Jenna quickly took off her belt. The soldier snatched it and disappeared again, hissing a half-heartedly stifled insult that Jenna ignored shamefaced. Tork was standing with his back to her, looking out of the narrow window. He didn’t turn around when the door closed but sighed heavily and indicated her to come closer. Obediently she walked over to him and he pointed at the iced moon where the giant column of smoke was still visible even from space.

    “Do you know that you could’ve died down there? And I don’t even mean with your jet or by the acidic atmosphere or because the Irken could have killed you… no, to cap it all there are giant worms living underneath the ice which would like nothing better than to devour foolish rebels who dare to enter the moon without proper protection. Especially loud vibrations attract them.”

Finally he turned towards her and crossed his arms on his back, the red eyes narrowed into small slits, but it was more a thoughtful expression than really furious. Jenna didn’t know what to say.

Tork tilted his head. “Only somebody who is  _really_  suicidal would have taken this risky, stupid and selfish action.” He said under his breath and she hung her head in shame and exhaustion, waiting for him to thrash her.

But the Commander just sighed again and sat down at a table, slowly pouring himself a glass of the vile alcohol Car had almost poisoned her with. “Or somebody who is worried  _sick_  and has no control about what they do or why.” He gave her a stern look. “I don’t think that you’re suicidal… and certainly not stupid. But I have a hard time to believe that you could actually  _feel_  something for this scum. So…” Tork pushed a second chair towards her with his foot and pointed his glass at it, “tell me about this Irken. He’s the one who abducted you that’s for damn sure. And I also know that he tortured you, humiliated you and even abused you. That’s what everyone here knows, safe for the latter I suppose. But there has to be something you’ve been keeping from us. Maybe because you were afraid?” He pondered, swaying his glass while she sank on the chair, her heart thumping away. Was Tork not going to punish her for not only endangering herself but also the whole crew?

He was still looking at her expectantly and she didn’t want to further put his patience to the test.

    “Yes, he- he did all of that… and he kept doing it even after I had surrendered to him… I-“, she was desperately struggling for words. How was she supposed to explain this completely wrong and messed up relationship she had with Set to Tork? She took a shaking breath.

“It… I  _hated_  him for it… and I can’t forgive what he has done to me. But at one point it  _changed_ , it was shortly after he allowed me to return to Earth to get some of my belongings, when I had already resigned myself to my fate. A friend of mine, one of the few who were there when I got abducted, saw me leave the house and tried to help me escape. Set… immediately thought I had betrayed him despite the explosive collar around my neck and attacked him. I pushed him away and got hurt myself.” She pulled down the collar of her top so that Tork could see the bright scar underneath the one the Butcher had given her, where Set’s spider leg had pierced her. Tork skeptically cocked a brow but let her continue.

“I thought I would die… but when I woke up he had closed the wound and even transfused me human blood he had synthesized. Shortly after that we got attacked by a group of Prerk. They kidnapped him and let me be but I followed them on their ship to save him… at that time I didn’t know why I went after him… maybe because I would have been stranded in space on my own without him, but maybe because I had started to feel something for him, something I don’t dare to acknowledge to myself even now because it’s just so wrong and morbid and sick!” she exhaled shakily, trying to push back her tears of shame. “I was able to free him but the Prerk caught us. When they realized that my blood contains iron, which is some sort of drug to them, they wanted to kill me over it. I somehow managed to strike a bargain with their leader: Set was to return to his ship to synthesize as much of my blood as possible while I was left as a pawn. What do you think would the average Irken have done in that moment?” she suddenly asked and Tork was so surprised that he answered reflexively:

    “He would’ve turned the ship around to annihilate the Prerk.”

She nodded and then shook her head without looking away.

    “Not him. He gave them the blood without a fight even though he was hurt in both his body and pride and mad with fury. He even waited until they were gone… only then he fainted. I tried to heal him but I could only do it with the help of his SIR unit.” She raised her hand with the scarred pinky. “He was grateful… and after that he changed. I can’t exactly say that he was treating me  _fondly_ , but I didn’t feel like a prisoner anymore, not like a thing he could experiment on at his every whim. Even on the  _Massive_  he seemed to be jealous that I would get stolen by another invader once he wasn’t around. He made this suit for me so I would at least be a bit safer and… he called me a companion, a friend.”

Tork was still looking rather skeptical and she leaned forward, a pleading look in her eyes.

“When I lay in the  _Massive_ 's MedBay, broken and dying he came to look for me! And I... I died in his arms. I don't know how he did it but he brought me back to live and treated my wounds the best he could. I will never forget the way he cradled me when I opened my eyes, the worry and relief in his eyes when I looked at him."  
  
    "That's ridiculous-" the Commader grunted but Jenna slammed her hand on the table, her eyes burning with tears and a wild fire as she interrupted him:  
  
    "It's the truth! I told him how the Tallest tricked me and had me thrown into their arena! He didn't believe me at first... but then he used a Mnemograph on me to read my memories! The next second he grabbed me, stormed out of the MedBay and slaughtered every Irken soldier in his way to get me out of there! He betrayed his Tallest to save me, to save  _my_  life! But shortly after that he tried to contact them again and I decided to make a run for it. I just thought… if he was able to act so different towards me maybe I could change him! He’s already so unlike the other Irken I’ve met except maybe for Ria. If I could just find a way to erase the Codes from his Pak… Tork…” she reached over the table and touched his arm. “Please! I swear I will make sure he doesn’t hurt anybody on this ship, I’ll vouch for him with my life! Maybe I can’t change him just now, not make him human or whatever you’d call it. But he listens to me. He wouldn’t risk anything that might put  _me_  in danger!”

The Commander scrutinized her appraisingly while the tears now started running down her cheeks after all. Then he stood up and slowly stilted through the room. Jenna stayed in her chair, too weary to stand up, and waited, her stomach a hard stone. Finally Tork sighed for the third time and stopped in his pacing.

    “You say he listens to you? Can you say that for sure?” he asked into the silence.

    “Yes!” she replied quickly although she was honestly doubting Set would listen to anything else than his instincts and his anger at the moment.

Tork grabbed the pistol from his belt and released the safety catch, the weapon hissing lowly.

    “I’m sure Nemon is already with him to take care of his injuries… he will be my witness in case the Irken decides to wreak havoc on this ship despite your efforts.” He put the gun back into its holster and shot her another uninterpretable glare before he shook his head. “So, you decided to  _befriend_  the most dangerous invader in the whole galaxy just like that… if he really obeys you like a trained animal I’ll buy you a  _drink_.” He growled and stepped outside. Jenna followed him with her heart pounding in her chest.

   
  


When they arrived at the cell Nemon already waited for them and sent one of his assistants away carrying a blood-smeared tray. Jenna felt a nervous sting in her guts seeing all that blood. Set was probably more severely injured than she had realized at first. The Ilenian nodded at Tork and waited until the Captain was talking to the guards before he quietly turned towards her.

    “How are you holding up?” he asked under his breath and squeezed her shoulder calmingly. She just nodded, unable to say anything. Nemon leaned closer and examined her briefly. “The acid doesn’t seem to have destroyed your lung tissue but I want to check your windpipe later on, as well as your nose.”

Jenna wanted to say something but the door opened and Tork shoved her inside. She held her breath when she saw Set. He sat bent-forward on a berth, his whole torso was patched up, his Pak taped and his broken right arm was fixed in a makeshift sling. His antennae were limply hanging down but his head shot up the second Jenna stepped into the room. He looked at her with a strangely empty look and she could only stare back at him.

Then Tork came in behind her with his weapon drawn and Set bared his teeth. Jenna raised her hands and quickly took a step towards him.

    “Set… stay calm, I…” He reached out with his fit arm as quick as a wink, quicker than Tork or Nemon could react and grabbed her wrist. The two rebels gave a startled shout but Jenna let herself get pulled into his arm unresisting. Set pressed her possessively to his chest, so tightly he was squeezing the air out of her lungs, and gave a warning hiss into Tork’s direction. The Commander raised his gun, Nemon shouted something and the stalemate was perfect. Nobody was moving a muscle, both sides stared at each other alert and hateful. Until Jenna’s thin voice, shaken by sobs, broke the dangerous silence.

Set looked down pricking up his antennae. She wrapped her arms around him and rested her head against his chest. “I’m sorry… oh god, Set, I’m so sorry!” she whined and got the hiccups trying to explain everything at once. “You… crashed and… I just couldn’t help it! I didn’t want to… leave you… to die. I’m sorry, please… please don’t attack them, they won’t hurt you… if you…” she stopped and looked up to him frightened. Set had tilted his head and carefully brushed over her cheek, as if he had to make sure she was real.

    “Jenna…” he just muttered thoughtful, her name stirring a memory. Then he looked around, seemed to really recognize his surroundings for the first time. Tork lowered his gun a bit but didn’t put it away just yet.

“Why am I…  _here_? Where…” he was confused, suddenly something dawned on him and he sat upright, his eyes fixed on Tork. “ _You_ …” he snarled menacingly whereat Tork immediately jerked his pistol back up. Jenna jumped to her feet, taking his face in her hands and forced him with some strain to look at her.

    “Set, stop it!” she was now talking in her own language, what finally seemed to reach him. “You have to trust me! I’m begging you, don’t do something that would cause them to kill you, I’m  _begging_  you, Set!” she whispered urgently, stroking over his cheeks to calm him down. “They won’t harm you or me if you cooperate okay? You’re safe now.”

He furrowed his brows angrily.

    “ _Safe_? You betrayed me to the enemy!” he grated, his throat just as burnt as her own. Jenna weakly shook her head. Set still didn’t understand who the real enemy was.

    “They’re not the enemy… they are  _friends_  whom I’ve  _lied to_  so I could protect you! And god dammit Set, I won’t watch them kill you just because you can’t control yourself for once in your life!” She had gotten louder and Tork gave a warning growl.

She shot the Vortian a pleading look before turning back to Set who was avoiding her gaze defiantly. “I know you’re angry and you got every fucking reason to be, okay? But I’m asking you, just this time; please don’t listen to yourself but to me!” she looked him in the eyes and held her breath tensed.

Set grumbled something under his breath. Then he looked at Tork, a hateful glimmer in his eyes but when he shot Jenna a quick side glance he just sighed and nodded.

    “I… won’t oppose you…” he said teeth-gnashingly but that seemed to be everything Tork needed to hear; he put the gun into his holster and put out a hand towards Set. He hissed outraged until Jenna nudged him brusquely what made him flinch. Still grumbling he gave her a look that couldn't bode well for her and reached out to touch Tork’s hand for a split second before his arm jealously coiled around Jenna again. The Commander nodded contented and left the room with Nemon, not ordering Jenna to follow him.

When the door shut close she exhaled relieved just to get assaulted by Set the very next second. He was more biting than kissing her and carelessly tore her lips open with his teeth. She struggled more out of start than actually meaning to but he hissed at her, murder in his eyes.

“If you dare to defy me now I swear on everything holy to me that I will tear you to pieces!”

She promptly stopped kicking and let him maul her. “You betrayed me…” a bite into her neck, “had me on drugs…” he painfully buried his fingers in her hair to bend her neck all the way back. “And allowed my enemies to capture me alive…” she wheezed when he squeezed her windpipe shut, bending over her. But all of a sudden he let go and seemed to slump. “But I can’t hate you… I can only hold you and never let you go ever again! You're mine…” he rested his forehead against hers, his hand distractedly brushing over her back.

Jenna caught her breath and crawled on his lap to hug him. Set groaned with pain and she shifted around trying to sit in a way that wouldn’t cause him more pain what ended in her sitting next to him with her legs over his.

    “So… you won’t kill me for leaving you behind?” she started carefully and he snarled slightly.

    “One day I will make you pay for this… but now I’m… tired.” He returned grouchily, feeling over his broken arm, grimacing at the pain it caused.

    “I was so worried…” she confessed, “when I heard that the Tallest put a bounty on your head, I-“

Set raised his head confused and stopped her.

    “What are you talking about? What bounty?”

She could just stare at him stunned; how could he not have known about this? After all one of his own people had just attacked him! Not sure if he was making fun of her she leaned forward and looked him straight in the eyes.

    “Set? They… they put such a high bounty on your death that half the armada was out there looking for you! Why do you think did that other Spacerunner attack you?”

He flicked his antennae reluctantly but didn’t answer her; Jenna grew impatient. “I interrogated an invader who had only been this far from the fleet because of your bounty! You can’t deny anymore that they want you dead, Set, no matter what your Code might tell you.” She added insisting but was still only given the silent treatment.

Desperate she grabbed his shoulder and pulled him towards her. “Set, please… you’ve got to realize by now that the Tallest want to get rid of you! Talk to me…” she implored him. The Irken slowly shook his head and Jenna sank against him exhausted.

A while they both stayed silent, he in stubbornness and she clueless until she nudged him. “Are you hungry?” she asked quietly and he wanted to nod, but shook his head vehemently at the same time. Jenna groaned annoyed. “As if they’re going to  _poison_ your food.” She growled but got an accusing side glance back that made her flinch guilty; he wouldn’t forgive her the drug-affair so soon.

Since he was still not saying anything she stood up and went for the door. Set grabbed her hand.

    “Come back… or I’ll have to bust out and come looking for you.” He muttered with a low hiss. Jenna just nodded and knocked on the door.

The guard glared warily through the observation slit and let her out. When he eyed her he wrinkled his nose in disgust and growled something clearly offensive in his own tongue. Jenna was suddenly hyperaware of the spots on her skin where Set had bitten her and turned a deep red as she stormed past the guard towards the MedBay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The happiest of reunions~  
> So what do you think? Will Set break out and go on a hunting spree? And what might the other crew members think of Jenna now that she rescued the most dangerous Irken invader from his much-anticipated demise?


	43. Gatecrasher - Pt. 3

### \- 19 - Gatecrasher 

#### Part 3

  
_A few days later - Rebellion_

  
The next days turned out to be as bad as Jenna had apprehended, if not worse: Car and Reliat avoided her at work and even after the initial commotion settled and Set still hadn’t killed anybody on the ship, so far, there weren’t much more than a few highly reserved words between them and only if they were really, really necessary. Especially Car seemed to be extra mad at her; it happened multiple times a day that she would pierce Jenna with furious glares when they had to work together. Reliat on the other hand tried at least to understand her motive behind Set’s rescue in the beginning but he too turned from her after a while since she wouldn’t tell any of them anything about what really had happened between Set and her.

Feorn stayed away from her completely, only when she passed the hangar on her way to Set’s cell she could see him from time to time but was quick to cast her eyes down whenever he noticed her.

But the rest of the crew was even worse; every time she returned to her quarter she would find new smearings on her door, more threats and insults and after the second day she was tired trying to rub them down every time. The Vortians would frequently shout their anger straight to her face in the hallway while the Ilenians and the rest of the aliens made do with shooting her vile stares and mutter their insults half stifled as they passed her.

Set was of no help either. He kept cursing that the rebels would only take him back to their base to execute him in front of a big crowd and that the Tallest surely had put the bounty on someone else’s head and everything was just a giant  _misunderstanding_. Despite his anger and the crew’s indignation she tried to visit him as often as Tork and the guards would allow it, to at least build up a part of their old trust and to convince him of the Tallest’s betrayal. And even though Set was more than mad at her he couldn’t quite keep his desire in check which always ended in a fight and had Jenna fall into her bed even more frustrated and helpless than before.

The stress was taking its toll on her; five days after Set’s rescue Jenna was looking worse than the day she had arrived on the  _Rebellion_ , emaciated because she couldn’t bring herself to eat in the mess hall, her skin dried out from sitting under the hot shower every night trying to burn away the feeling of being stained, and she was sleep-deprived because the fear of letting her guard down kept her awake.  And on top of it all she had made it a habit to bite her lips whenever someone was cursing or whispering behind her back so that now her lower lip was blood-crusted and swollen. At least the black rings around her eyes put most of the crew members off so they wouldn’t come right up to her face anymore.

When she snuck into the MedBay on the sixth morning, a queasy feeling in her stomach again and with another crushing headache, Nemon stood up from his desk without a word and pulled her into one of the labs. Jenna avoided his gaze until he suddenly slammed his fist on a table what made her look up scared and startled.

    “I am more than  _disappointed_  by you, Jenna!” The hot anger in his voice hit her so unexpected that she swallowed and had to look away again; she didn’t want to burst into tears for the umpteenth time now. Nemon sighed tired and raised his hands apologetic. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to frighten you… but I will be damned if that didn’t woke you up! For the last few days you’ve been letting yourself go to waste like this; you’re not even  _trying_  to talk to Car and Reliat and don’t get me started on  _Feorn_! You’re not the only one who’s suffering because of what you’ve done, not by a long shot!”

Shocked she stared at him and automatically dug her teeth into her lip but at least the pain kept her from breaking down completely. Nemon pointed at the door as though Set was sitting right behind it.

“This invader has robbed countless of them of their families, not to mention the destruction of so many planets he caused or has been involved in, I can’t even  _name_  them all! I…” he seemed to have lost this train of thoughts from all his anger and ran his hand over his face. Jenna swallowed hard again, trying to push away the urge to throw up. Her body was frozen from fear and helplessness. And guilt.

    “I know what he is, what he did… but… what should I say? What  _could_  I possibly say? I’m so afraid they’ll rip me apart if I even dare to say anything, to  _defend_  myself for what I’ve done, because it’s all so  _wrong_  Nemon!” she croaked and wrapped her arms around her chest, her stomach protesting at the mere thought of having to explain Car her relationship to Set and she trembled.

Nemon gently grabbed her shoulders.

    “I know you’re scared of what they might do or say to you… but you have to  _try_  at least. They can’t hate you more than right now, can they?” he said calmly. “Tork told me you want to change him. That quietens my worries that you only saved him because his torment subdued you into thinking you belong to him. I know you’re stronger than that and I’m sure if you explain it all to Car and Reliat, the whole truth, in a calm minute, they will understand. That doesn’t mean they will automatically forgive you but at least you give them a chance to understand  _why_  you did it. And understanding is always the most important step towards reconciliation.” He sighed again and gave her a sad smile. “I’m asking you for your own sake. You look terrible, you know? I want you to find your courage again, just as your self-confidence. If you don’t stand up for what you believe in no one will ever acknowledge it.” he turned around and stopped at the door. “By the way, I’ve talked to the… to Set…” he gave her a bewildered gaze. “It would seem that he really is concerned about  _you_  first and foremost, even though he doesn’t show it directly. Maybe you could convince Tork to allow him a bit of day parole; it would reduce the crew’s distrust when they see that an Irken invader is not attacking them on first sight and above all listens to someone half his size.” With this he left her.

Jenna stayed in the lab and thought about the doctor’s words.

On one hand his arguments were completely logical and she even considered herself able to convince Car and Reliat to trust her again, though she wasn’t so sure about Feorn; after all she had betrayed his trust and everything they had experienced. On the other hand she was scared that Set wouldn’t play along and instead decided to decimate the  _Rebellion_ ’s crew to a more satisfying amount.

She caught herself biting her lip again and angrily forced herself to stop what only led to her chewing her nails.

All of a sudden the door opened and Car stepped in. When she noticed Jenna she stiffened and immediately turned around to leave.

    “Car, wait… can I talk to you?”

The Vortian stopped and turned her head around yet didn’t say anything. Jenna felt a new wave of sickness and ran her fingers through her straggly hair. She really must be looking terrible the way she felt.

    “What do you want?” Car asked icy but turned around, arms crossed.

    “I… I know you all hate me for what I’ve done and I wish I could give you a conclusive explanation that would excuse it but I can’t.”

    “You think we hate  _you_?” Car gave an arid laughter. “Don’t be stupid, Jenna, I don’t hate you. We hate the mindless, mass murdering  _killing machine_  you decided to bring along. We’re all frustrated and disappointed in you still allowing this monster to have you under his thumb  _again_  after all he’s done to you! Why couldn’t you just let him die?!” she was hissing now and made a dismissive gesture. Jenna raised her hands annoyed in turn.

    “I don’t  _know_ , okay? I don’t know why I saved him, despite all that, even though it would’ve been so easy! But to me he isn’t that monster anymore! At least not as you might think he is…”

    “Oh, then please, for the love of Vort, fucking explain to me why he isn’t! I want to know why you defend the life of someone who violated you in every way imaginable, who killed and slaughtered innocent species, their children, their women and destroyed their homes! And it better be now because this whole situation is impending to escalate!” Car shouted and smashed her fist into the metal wall.

    “He saved my life!” Jenna screamed back and that had the Vortian speechless. Car’s eyes widened in stun and before she could catch herself the human went on, everything bursting out of her. “I was dying! My body was broken and shattered and the only thing keeping me alive was the hope of seeing this  _monster_  one last time before I go! And he came back for me. He came back and I died. Just like that. Boom,  _lights out_!” Jenna clenched her fists and wiped the tears away with the ball of her hand, her voice hoarse from the strain not to break into sobs. “Have you ever been close to dying? It’s true that the last sense to go is the hearing. I could hear him scream my name before I died. And then I was back, I don’t know how he did it but I was alive again and he was pressing my body to his chest. Did you ever ask yourself how I got so far away from the armada in the first place without flying the ship myself? It’s because Set killed nearly a dozen guards to escape with me after he learned why I was so injured. He ignored his Tallest’s authority only to get me out of there. Yes, he is a monster, but I just can’t say that he’s a mindless killing machine anymore. He’s different and I’m going to prove it!” she panted for air and slouched, her head spinning, before she took a shaking breath, clearing her throat.

“You know… there’s something else I have to tell you… and it’s fine if you’re disgusted, I don’t even blame you. Just please, try to put yourself in my shoes, okay?”                                                                                                           

And then everything broke out of her, she couldn’t stop talking and told Car everything, far more than she had told Tork or Feorn or even Nemon. The Vortian’s eyes first widened in disgust, then disbelief and finally in reluctant understanding. When Jenna was done, now crying after all, Car sank shaken against a freezer and just stared at her.

    “You mean… you two… you were…?” she neither sounded disgusted nor did she judge Jenna in any way, she was just shocked by the whole extent of the story she had only known a fraction of until now.

Jenna nodded, shrugged and finally wiped over her cheeks.

    “Yeah… in some twisted way we were. I don’t know at what point I stopped struggling and actually went to liking it.” She sighed, more a dry sob, and leaned against the wall herself. Her head felt like it was going to explode.

Car sheepishly scratched her horns.

    “Okay… okay, you gave me an explanation and I think you were open and honest with me. A tad too open here and there…” she looked at Jenna and suddenly came up to her and hugged her.

At her first shock followed such a relief that she just slumped in Car’s arms and feebly returned the embrace.

    “I’m sorry I’ve treated you so shitty… but, you do understand why, don’t you?” she sounded a bit insecure but Jenna nodded.

    “Yes… I guess I would’ve reacted the same way to be honest. Now I’m just glad that you at least listened to what I had to tell you and that’s all I can ask of you.” She replied and massaged her throbbing temples as Car parted from her.

    “You look like shit.” The Vortian commented and a bit of pity resonated within it. Jenna grimaced and nodded.

    “Trust me, I feel even worse. I’d like to talk to Reliat as well if that’s okay with you.” She started but Car stopped her with a wave of her hand.

    “No way would I miss an opportunity to mentally scar him like that! As long as you’re cool with me telling him the juicy bits as well.” She grinned and Jenna got nervous again.

    “But only Reliat, okay? Car please, I’m already despised by the whole crew, don’t make me look even worse!” her plead was serious but Car smiled.

    “I can’t promise you I’ll hold my tongue in case I get asked  _directly_. But don’t worry, I won’t make you look bad. And just so you know: I still hate that bastard and that won’t change anytime soon, no matter how well he listens to you.” That wasn’t exactly reassuring but better than nothing even though she could only rely on Car’s word. She could always tell the crew what really happened herself but she felt far from strong enough for that. And there still was the situation with Feorn… and she didn’t want to talk to Car about that at all. First she would somehow have to manage to make him listen to her.

When both of them left the lab together Reliat looked quite baffled and wanted to ask Car what was going on with an insecure side glance towards Jenna. She stove him off, promising him an explanation later on but when he saw Jenna’s shamefaced expression he reckoned that there might have been some sort of talk between the two women, and he smiled at her before they all got back to work.

Nemon gave Jenna an encouraging nod as she passed him and she felt her nausea disappearing, leaving only a hopeful nervousness. Jenna felt reassured; talking with Car had shown her that she would have to approach the other crew members directly instead of avoiding them if she truly wanted to change not only Set but also his image.

 

After work was over she went straight to the mess hall to get Set something to eat. Up to now he would refuse anything she brought him yet the trays had always been empty the next day, and at her annoyed look he would act as if he didn’t notice it.

She arrived at his cell with some donut-like snacks she had last seen on the camping planet, mentally bracing for whatever mood he would be in today.

With a blood-curdling scream she dropped the food. The cell door was bent and wide open, the guard lying on his back, his face a deep blue and Set was bending over the much smaller Vortian, his good hand tightly clenched around his throat, strangling him without mercy.

    “Set! Stop it!” she shouted panicking and tried to pull him off the guard but he just hissed surprised and shook her off.

“What are you doing?! Let go right now you rotten-“ – “Stop  _screaming_  already and  _help_  me with this!” he bellowed back and even toughened his grip around the Vortian’s throat. Jenna shook her head in despair and disbelief and she tried once more to separate the Irken from his victim when she spotted the red, slimy thing sticking out the guard’s gaping mouth, frantically trashing around. Set snarled triumphing and pointed at it with his chin.

    “Get it! Don’t let it get away!” he shouted warningly and she immediately followed his order: with a quick motion she clutched the flouncing tail and pulled. The Vortian had fainted at this point and she braced herself against the floor, pulling harder on the critter, her fingers impending to slip off the greasy skin, when it suddenly let go with a wet, ripping sound, making her topple over backwards with her nasty find. Jenna could already hear hasty footsteps in the hallway but she only stared shocked and grossed out at what she was holding in her hands.

It was a red, slimy worm, as long as Set’s hand and as thick as her forearm. Giant jaws spiked with rows and rows of razor-sharp teeth, stained with the Vortian’s blood, turned towards her, snapping menacingly and definitely angry as the worm squirmed between her fingers, eagerly trying to get to her face. Before she could actually drop it out of fear Set snatched the monster from her and squashed the ugly head with his bare hand, spraying both of them with brown goo. Jenna was about to retch but in this moment the Vortian came to again and stared at Set with a scared but also baffled look, the same second Tork and his soldiers dashed around the corner, weapons at the ready and shouting orders.

Jenna jumped to her feet and raised her hands, placing herself between Set and the Captain.

    “Tork, wait, he didn’t…” she started but the frozen look on his face made it clear that the Commander wasn’t in the mood to listen to her pleading yet again. With one hand he shoved Jenna away, the other pointing a shotgun at Set’s chest who slowly raised his uninjured arm over his head and stood up until he was overtowering Tork by a good bit. He looked completely composed. Jenna however was still desperately trying to get Tork to listen to her, when the downed guard suddenly croaked:

    “Shit… son of a bitch saved my life…” he grated in denial and massaged his throat. Only that made Tork wheel around, his arm with the shotgun sank down a good half meter and Set’s antennae whipped through the air nervously since the distracted Commander was now aiming at his crotch.

    “What did you just say?” he snapped and now Jenna was finally able to catch his attention.

    “Commander? I… I know what this must look like. When I arrived just a moment ago I thought Set was going to kill him.” Immediately Tork shot Set a withering glare so Jenna continued quickly. “B- but he didn’t! I noticed some sort of worm stuck in his throat and while I don’t know how this creature attacked him I know that Set prevented it from… eating through his…” she faltered since she didn’t quite know what the worm had actually been up to but then she heard Nemon calling and exhaled relieved.

The Ilenian pushed through the guards standing around and stopped thunderstruck when he caught sight of the situation. The wounded guard groaned and crawled towards a wall to rest his head against. Set was still silent and just looked around vigilantly. Finally Nemon regained his poise and bent down to inspect the splattered remains of the worm. With a shocked sound he recoiled.

    “A  _gorger_ *? How did a fricking  _gut-gorger_  get onto this ship!?” he shouted aghast and made a beeline for the injured guard to examine him. “How did this happen!?” he demanded to know furiously and the Vortian flinched under the curt inquiry.

    “Well I… uhm… it was…” he stammered sheepishly.

Jenna had eyed the dead worm as well, thereby spotting something lying next to the door and hunkered down confused to get a closer look. There were crumbled leftovers of a snack, something like a cake. The way the crumbs and brims lay around and looked made it seem as if the cake had been hollow inside. When she touched a bigger piece she felt viscous mucus cold under her fingers. She couldn’t recall ever bringing Set something like this…

    “Who brought this?” she asked with shaking voice as a horrible suspicion fell into place in her mind. The guard tried to curl up even more when every pair of eyes traveled from Jenna to him.

    “I have no idea! It was standing on the floor when I arrived for relief… I thought you must’ve had left it for the Irken… and…” he looked around one guilty. “I… I just thought I couldn’t leave something this  _deliciously_  looking to him… so… I…”

Nemon understood immediately, just as Tork who groaned annoyed.

    “You ate it yourself, probably even right before his eyes.” The Commander growled and furrowed his brows reproachfully. The guard flushed and nodded.

    “The next second this thing shot out of the cake and right into my mouth… I thought it was over.” He raised his head to give Set a nod. “The Irken saw everything and broke down the door as if it was nothing, threw me to the ground and squeezed my throat shut with just one hand…” he continued whereat Nemon shot Set an approving look.

    “That was quick-thinking, without this measure the gut-gorger would have gorged right through your, well,  _guts_ … that was quite smart.”

Set just shrugged.

     “If I had just stood by and watched him perish you would have blamed  _me_  right away afterwards… and I wouldn’t even have been able to remove the parasite if Jenna hadn’t shown up.” He muttered grimly and pointed at his broken arm. The guard shook his head fiercely.

    “Nah, Nemon would’ve identified the wounds.” He flinched at the mere mental image. “I can’t believe I’m saying this but…  _thanks_. I owe you my life, Irken. And thank you, too, human, for pulling this beast out of my throat…” he sighed exhausted and let the other guards pick him up to get carried towards the MedBay.

Finally Tork lowered his gun completely and looked around.

    “I have to thank you as well, invader. If you hadn’t acted there would be a hungry gut-gorger on the loose right now. Alright… then there’s only one question left to ask:  _How the bloody hell did a fucking gorger get on my ship!?_ ”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> * (Gut-)Gorger: Carnivorous worm species, often used by assassins throughout the galaxy since they sometimes can occur as common vermin in various foods. On consumption the worm eats away at the victim's guts, often until he gets out at the other end. They have an insatiable hunger and they can reach lengths up to four meters if not stopped in time.
> 
> Jenna isn't the only one who has made some enemies... is it really that good an idea to let Set out of his cell?


	44. Gatecrasher - Pt. 4

### \- 19 - Gatecrasher 

#### Part 4

  
Tork immediately imposed a search for the guards who had watched the cell before the incident as well as a complete inspection of the ship and its logs in order to find out whoever could have had the opportunity to smuggle the gorger on board. He ordered Jenna and Set to follow him and although they were escorted by only two guards he hadn’t told them to put Set in chains for this, what Jenna construed as a good sign.

On the Bridge the Commander sank tired onto his seat and Jenna squeezed Set’s arm reassuringly although she felt more like she was trying to reassure herself. Tork stroked over his horns distracted.

    “I believe it’s beyond all questions what the reason behind all this damned chaos is: someone was planning to kill you…”

Set gave a derogative snort; Jenna knew he would never touch anything she hadn’t brought him personally or show any other unwariness that might prompt an assassination, the Irken was simply too suspicious and kunning to let his guard down like this.

Tork continued undeterred: “For that you have my apologies… you might be a prisoner on this ship but that doesn’t give my men the right to disobey my rules and commands. The culprit will be punished accordingly as soon as we seize him. And I have to give you credit for your actions, not only did you save the life of one of my men, even though I probably would’ve let him die myself for his stupidity… no, you also stayed in this cell the whole time although you could’ve left it at any time! Why?” he finally asked and raised his hands in utter confusion.

Set looked to the side and observed the bustling aliens working on the Bridge, who were looking far more often over their shoulders since he had entered.

    “I told you I wouldn’t oppose you… and I didn’t want Jenna to get into  _even more_  trouble because of me.” He growled but there was also an accusative tone in his voice. Jenna looked up to him surprised. So Set had actually known of how bad she was being treated all this time?

Tork cocked a brow.

    “Trouble?” the Vortian asked baffled and Jenna swallowed embittered. Set just looked at him with his head tilted.

    “She’s looking even worse than the whole time I had her with me. I can imagine that your crew wasn’t exactly delighted by my… arrival thanks to her and apparently made her feel that.” He replied, wrapping his left arm around her possessively. Jenna gaped at him even more confused than before. Not only was he completely composed but also absolutely  _diplomatic_ with the rebel Commander. A bit worried she reached up to get his attention.

    “Set? Are you alright?” she asked quietly and he hissed outraged.

    “Of course I am, now shush human.” He turned to Tork again who had watched them interested. He looked at Jenna.

    “I believe you now that he listens to you and wouldn’t hurt my people. But the way things are developing I don’t think I can say the same for my crew… Jenna, I’m at a loss. What should I do now? If they see that he doesn’t immediately run amok it would calm everybody to a great extend… but… if they’d see him out of his cell… I don’t want to see the incident from just now repeat in any way.” His words sounded honestly concerned and that gave her the courage she needed.

    “It won’t.” Jenna said with steady voice, she was now looking just as grim as Set. “I will see to it personally that the other crew members get used to him. I don’t expect them to like him, but they have to see that Set isn’t the monster they think he is!”

Tork gave her a skeptic glance, Set as well.

    “And how are you going to do that, hm? Take me on a nice  _stroll_  through the mess hall, showing me around?” Set chuckled snidely and she shot him an angry glare. Of course he wasn’t helping her in the least!

    “ _No_ , Set, I was actually thinking of the MedBay! For a start that is. Your arm hasn’t been treated properly yet and you have suffered burns of your respiratory tract just like me. Once the medical staff gets used to you I’m sure the rest of the crew won’t be that hard to convince.”

At that Tork looked rather surprised.

    “You know that sounds like it might actually work…” he grinned, rubbing his chin. “I think you should try it, after all if word gets around that you could have left the cell at any time it would be kind of pointless putting you back in.” he said towards Set and he gave Jenna a nod, again with a mean grin.

    “I concur entirely.” He replied kindly but Jenna was feeling uneasy the way he was staring at her. Set was definitely up to something. The sudden thought of having to accommodate him in her quarter had her almost fainting, particularly considering that Feorn was right across from her room which made the whole situation even worse. She was about to address that when Tork frowned pensively.

    “Though I think it might not be smart to put you up in Jenna’s quarter; I don’t want to give anyone special preferences but I have to make sure that the guards are able to have an eye on you when she’s not around. So, in order to make everyone feel safer I will have one of the unoccupied officers’ quarters next to the guardroom stocked up for the both of you, as long as that’s alright with you Jenna.”

Before she could say anything Set nodded with a wide grin.

    “Oh, I think it will suffice.” The Irken purred so politely that Jenna gazed at him downright shocked. Either he was planning to take her to task without ceremony for leaving him behind or he was actually losing it!

Tork just sighed relieved and sent them back to the MedBay, with an additional escort this time.

The whole way Jenna shot Set wary side glances yet the invader seemed to be as cool as a cucumber. Only when she studied him thoroughly from head to toe it caught her eye that his fingers were twitching every few seconds, just as his antennae. Worried she grabbed his hand and he looked down surprised.

“What? What is it now? For the last time, I’m fine!” he sounded disgruntled why she quickly let go though it only confirmed her suspicion: Something wasn’t right with Set! She decided to ask him once they were alone.

When they entered the MedBay the effect on the staff couldn’t have been any greater. Some of them screamed and even Car recoiled startled as she turned around and suddenly noticed the giant Irken standing behind her. Set was relishing in the panic he caused with a satisfied smile and just followed Jenna well-behaved while she tried to ignore the bystanders and walked right up to Nemon’s desk

The Ilenian was writing his report on the injured guard and neither did he look up at the screams nor did he pause in his typing. Only when Jenna was standing right in front of him he placed the datapad aside and leaned back in his chair.

     “Jenna, Set…” he gave the Irken a stern nod, “I have already been informed, please wait right here. Jenna, you go and prepare everything together with Car. We’ll take the big clamps.”

Set’s grin immediately vanished at his words and he stared at the doctor in disbelief. Jenna dragged him to one of the biers while Car seemed unsure whether she really wanted to get near the tall Irken.

    “Hey, what does he mean with ‘big clamps’?” he asked nervously what made her snicker.

    “Oh please, Set, don’t be a wuss! We need to reduce and secure your arm or it’s going to grow back together wrongly.” She explained but he didn’t look like he was convinced that this measure was necessary.

Cautious Car approached, hiding half behind Jenna, or rather using her as a shield.

    “The guards already told me he was tall… but I never really believed they can get this… giant!” she whispered timid into her ear. Set had heard it anyway and stretched even more, flattered.  

    “Well if you  _must_ know I’m the tallest invader of the armada… but that’s  _all_ you need to know!” he added quickly and scrutinized Car warily. Jenna jumped to her aid, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.

    “Set, this is Car. She is Tork’s daughter and a good  _friend_  of mine.” She stressed the last part notably what had him pull a sulky face.

    “You mean I can’t eat her?” he asked with played disappointment in his voice and Car almost toppled fainting. Jenna punched his good arm but he only laughed gratingly; he was having a whale of a time. But then Nemon came back with his tools and Set went silent in an instant, his antennae dropping from nervousness until they were flat on his head. Now it was Car’s turn to shoot him a nasty grin as she showed him the big clamps which were really frightening to look at to be honest.

 

Treating Set proved more tricky than you might have expected with a soldier of his stature. He was complaining and whining the whole time and he even started cussing threats what Jenna simply halted with a few sarcastic comments whereat he only went back to giving her this murderous glare again.

Finally they were done fixing his arm without someone getting killed in the process, as he had bode the whole time, and even Car knew now that the Irken was more likely to bark than really bite. In the end she couldn’t stifle a mocking chuckle when Set kept grudging until Jenna finally palmed soothingly over his head.

The other assistants had calmed down gradually as well, at least they didn’t flinch anymore when Set stood up to inspect his arm. The sole fact that he hadn’t ripped their heads off was helping a great deal.

Jenna herself had a load taken off her mind; although everyone was still extremely wary around him and looking daggers at Set the overall panic had fortunately vanished. Set muttered his thanks to Nemon when he left the MedBay with Jenna.

The guards brought them to their new quarter, they seemed to be a lot more relaxed as well. The crew members crossing their way were eyeing Set hateful but Jenna smiled at them and since the Irken wasn’t getting ready to suddenly attack them most of them actually stopped to look after them surprised.   
  
At the door the guard took his leave, casting Set a last scrutinizing look. Jenna opened the door with her Chronometer and took a surprised breath when she entered the room. For a rebel ship this quarter was almost exorbitantly vast even though its furnishing was spartanic like everywhere else on the  _Rebellion_ , and her stuff had already been moved from her old quarter. She felt an awkward moment of abashment, being treated like this and not having done anything that would justify it.

Set immediately walked over to the bed and just sprawled on it without further ado. She watched him and stepped up to the window. On Set’s ship she have had the chance to see space from almost every room but on the  _Rebellion_ windows were both a luxury and a weak spot in her defenses. At the thought of Set’s ship she felt a sting of guilt, she had gotten pretty used to it in the meantime. Suddenly it came into her mind that she hadn’t seen SIR anywhere since the crash… did he get destroyed on the ice moon?

Strong arms, one of them endowed with heavy metal clamps, wrapped around her and Set lifted her up as if she was weighing nothing, what was doubtlessly accurate. Jenna allowed him to carry her around without protest, she had already mentally prepared herself for what was likely to follow this, until Set dropped her on the bed and almost crushed her when he decided to just fall over face first.

Struggling for air she scooted away from underneath him far enough so that she could breathe at least but he quickly put one arm over her so she couldn’t get away any further.

    “You stay here…” he growled into the mattress. “I’m not done… with…” She couldn’t hear the last word because he was already asleep. With a start Jenna realized that he surely hadn’t slept all these days out of suspicion and that gave her another sting. She had been so occupied with her own misery that she didn’t think about how he must’ve been feeling! Guilt-ridden she snuggled up against the snoring Irken and pecked his cheek. Set opened his eyes for a second, snorted and was already asleep again. Gradually her nervousness vanished as she watched him. She was relieved that he was still alive, even though his completely strange behavior had her worried.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Set is a whiny baby who don't like no needles n shit :B


	45. Gatecrasher - Pt. 5

### \- 19 - Gatecrasher 

#### Part 5

  
Suddenly it knocked at the door and Jenna flinched startled. Who could that be? Carefully she crawled out from beneath Set’s arm, cautious not to wake him but the Irken seemed to be sleeping very deeply. Her hand darted to her hip. Then she remembered that Tork had taken her armor away!

Jenna looked around for something to defend herself with instead; should it be the one who had tried to kill Set he would have to go through her first.

Armed with one of her high heels she approached the door, opening it slowly. When she saw who it was she went pale and dropped the shoe. Feorn crossed his arms.

    “Hey… I just wanted to see if everything’s alright…” he muttered, apparently the Djelb hadn’t really expected her to actually open. Jenna shot a nervous glance over her shoulder but Set was still fast asleep.

    “Yeah… everything’s  _peachy_.” she replied quietly yet couldn’t hide the undertone in her voice. Feorn sighed.

    “Listen, I… I just can’t take all of this lightly… when did you plan to tell me?” now he sounded disappointed and at first she couldn’t tell what he was talking about and stared at him confused. “That you have feelings for him.” he explained reluctant, his ears set back. Jenna slouched her shoulders, she really didn’t feel like talking the whole story through with him in the hallway like that, and judging from his sudden insight Car must’ve had already told him what was going on. Great.

    “Well I would have wanted to explain myself but as I understood it you weren’t exactly bent on giving me an opportunity.” She realized the accusation in her words and sighed. “I’m sorry Feorn. I’m sorry for hurting you like this, I never meant to! I’m sorry for lying to you, but I didn’t know what to do! I was just so glad to be safe for once I didn’t want to lose it all again by telling you all about my true relationship with Set.”

Feorn gave her a sad look.

    “Then why did you have to go and ruin it?” he whispered and now she felt anger. It wasn’t by her choice that things were so complicated!

    “It wasn’t my choice, okay? At least not deliberately, it… I just had… augh, everything’s so fucking messed up!” she hissed, running her hands through her hair. But that didn’t convince him at all.

    “And then why are you sleeping in the exact same room? Oder was that not by your choice as well?” the Djelb growled hurt and Jenna recoiled, her eyes wide open. Of course he was jealous. Of course he didn’t want to lose her to an Irken who had tortured and abused her and didn’t deserve her in any way. However that didn’t give him the right to push her like that.

    “Feorn, Tork trusts me that I have him under control! I’m the only thing keeping him from tearing this ship apart and killing everyone! And I’m not sure if I can keep him in check forever.”

    “Then let me help you.”

For a second she was genuinely perplexed and positively surprised but then she caught the look on his face and the cold gleam of his eyes. “One word from you; it’s going to be quick and easy, he wouldn’t even realize what’s happening. Everybody would understand this decision.”

Her eyes narrowed in cold fury and he took a step back when she raised a hand threateningly.

    “Don’t you dare lay a hand on him! I told you I would kill him myself if I had to and that stays this way! But I want to give him at least a goddamn chance to change and only when there’s no other way out anymore, nothing I could try, only then will I give up, do you understand me?!”

    “You can’t really mean that…” Feorn muttered but she nodded fiercely.

    “Oh yes I do! This whole… violence and killing has to come to an end or the galaxy will never have peace again!” Jenna implored, she was shaking from anger and helplessness. She didn’t want to lose Feorn but she could already see him drifting even further away from her. “I talked with Car, though I guess she already told you about it, why else would you show up now. She was just as mad as you at first but at least she’s trying to understand my decision, why can’t you, too?”

A sad look flashed over his face and he closed in on her again.

    “Don’t you think that this is  _different_  than with Car or Nemon?” he uttered plaintively and she flinched hard, all her anger subsided in one blow and only left the guilt inside her.

    “I know… and… I feel like the worst piece of crap for what I did to you, to us. I wish I could change everything… but I can’t.” she sniffed and cast her eyes to the ground, unable to look him in the eyes for all she said seemed like a half-assed apology even to her. “I just hope we can still be… friends.”

Jenna felt like cringing when she mumbled that, it sounded so hypocritical.

Feorn wanted to say something when his gaze suddenly shot up and he stopped. Before Jenna could turn around she felt a hand wrapping possessively around her hip and Set supported himself against the doorframe, leaning over her to growl menacingly at Feorn.

    “Something the matter?” he asked quietly and his voice was so barely controlled that she feared he would lunge at Feorn the second he flinched.

But he wasn’t impressed in the slightest by Set’s threatening gestures.

    “I was just about to leave.” He hissed back and showed his fangs. “Jenna, you know I’ll always be there for you, no matter what happens.” he said with a short, sad look to her before he turned around and left. Immediately Set slammed the door shut, roughly grabbing her wrist and turning her to him, a wild fire in his eyes she hadn’t seen since he had gotten on the  _Rebellion_.

    “Alright, and now you’re going to explain to me what you have to do with a fucking Djelb that he shows up, prancing around like you’re the  _bestest of friends_!” the Irken snarled furiously and didn’t even bother to hold back his anger anymore. Jenna just gave him a bored, stubborn look; she couldn’t be bothered getting put through the mill by him right now. She extended the silence until Set put her back down on the ground with an angry snort and stomped over to the bed. Jenna waited for him to slump on it, then she pushed herself away from the door and sat beside him. Set growled and wanted to shove her off the bed like a petulant child throwing a tantrum but she grabbed his hand and interlaced her fingers tightly with his.

    “I slept with him.” She said quietly and all color seemed to disappear from his face.

In disbelief Set stared at her, too shaken to explode. Jenna sighed and squeezed his hand.

“It… dammit, I don’t know how to explain this.” She went on tired, rubbing her forehead which was already throbbing again. “He was nice to me, made me feel like I meant something to him and at first I didn’t even like him but… we both had our scars and I just wanted to feel something  _real_ again, you know? Not scared or threatened but… loved. When I heard that the Tallest wanted to see you dead I thought I’d never see you again and…” she couldn’t keep talking, the fear and guilt were tightening around her throat like a noose.

Now Set was looking at her disgusted, a vein had started throbbing on his temple. He wound his hand out of hers and grabbed her left wrist where the Irken brand was burned into her flesh.

    “You’re mine…” he just muttered as if he had to remind himself. Jenna slowly shook her head.

    “No. I’m not  _yours_ , I’m not  _his_. I don’t belong to anybody.” She replied quietly, ready for him to assault her now after all. Instead the Irken pouted and pulled her into his jealous embrace.

    “Keep telling yourself that, human, you know your place very well.” He grunted next to her ear while he sank on his side, pulling her along. Jenna allowed the Irken to press her to his chest almost painfully but she managed to wedge an arm free to grab his chin and force him to look at her.

    “Careful, Set. You’re only alive because I  _don’t allow_  them to kill you. That could easily change if you keep being such an asshole! If you’re only here to make me your slave again then you’ve come to the wrong neighborhood!” she hissed back and that actually made his smug grin vanish. And suddenly a thought struck her; she wondered why this hadn’t occurred to her before!

“Set… why exactly weren’t you on your way back to the armada? Why  _did_  you fly into this remote corner of the galaxy all alone?” initially she had blamed his hunger for revenge and his possessiveness but it seemed illogical and unlikely that those would be stronger than his urge to return to his Tallest for redemption.

He gave a reluctant growl and placed a kiss on her lips to shut her up but that matter was too important to Jenna to let him distract her right now.

“Set, I’m serious! Why didn’t you stop hunting me even though you probably knew that you would lose against the rebels?!” she broached the subject again, pushing herself away from him until he finally snarled and covered her mouth with his hand.

    “Will you shut up?! You’re mine, understood? How could I possibly let it happen that those rebel-scumbags do Tallest-knows-what to you, huh?! I just wish I had found them sooner…”

He grinded his teeth at the thought what else might have happened if he hadn’t tracked down this blasted excuse for a ship! His head was aching terribly and this horrible itching in his Pak was back. It was unbearable, the urge to report back to his Tallest was so powerful it made him sick; he had to do something to distract himself from it!

Jenna’s eyes snapped open in start when Set gruffly pushed her on her back and bent over her panting; sweat had formed on his neck and the vein on his temple looked like it was about to burst open. She had been prepared for a sudden outburst and didn’t even think of fighting back but quickly pulled off her clothes as he was about to simply tear them apart, and then he was already inside her.

She swallowed a cry of pain from the piercing pang that went through her and just clung to him, reflexively feeling for his antennae. That somewhat slowed Set down at least, but only for a brief moment. He was resting his good arm above her head, his body convulsing with every desperate, hungry thrust and he fucked her so relentlessly she feared he would break her in half.

He moaned deeply, a rumbling growl and quickened his pace even until he suddenly came, his fingers digging into her shoulder and Jenna thought at the edge of her mind that it would leave a huge bruise in the morning, before the electric shock from his Pak fried her brain and Set collapsed on top of her. Groaning she opened her eyes, her vision distorted by the jolt. Set didn’t move.

Worried she shook his shoulder.

    “Set? Hey!” Jenna tugged on the thin stalks until he finally grunted and opened his eyes heavy-lidded.

    “You’re loud…” he huffed exhausted, closing her lips with a brusque, tired kiss and immediately fell asleep again. His body was strangely heavy as if he was more unconscious than sleeping and his Pak was making weird noises, like an angry buzzing.

She freed herself the best she could from his limp body and stayed lying down exhausted. Confused she stared at the ceiling.

His sudden freak-out didn’t seem to be a direct reaction to Feorn… more likely it had to do something with her trying to ask him about his behavior. On one hand that gave her even more hope to change him, on the other hand she was worried about Set’s weird demeanor. Was it perhaps physically unpleasant for him to not contact his leaders? Or painful even?

She very well remembered how irritable he had been shortly after their escape, how often he had just dragged her into bed and how she had later on caught him, about to send a message to his Tallest.

Jenna flinched when she tried to roll onto her side; Set had been even less considerate than she had feared. To at least ease the pain a bit she drew her knees to her chest and huddled under the blanked. Maybe Nemon would happen to know something more about the Paks… she had never really asked him how much he knew about Irken physiology.

Jenna stayed awake for hours, pondering over the latest events until sleep overwhelmed her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for not uploading last week, I had a bad week :C  
> next chapter will be up in a few moments, stay tuned!


	46. Guilt

### \- 20 – Guilt

  _7 hours later – Rebellion – Officer’s Quarter’s_

 

Jenna’s Chronometer was bleeping from somewhere far away yet she immediately picked up the meanwhile well-known sound and woke from her sleep. She froze in start when looking right into crimson eyes, then she remembered why Set was lying next to her and huffed a quiet sigh as she sat up to turn off the alarm. The Irken silently watched her getting dressed and putting the Chronometer into her pocket. Then he frowned.

    “Where’s your suit? I thought you’d taken it with you.” Set mumbled drowsily and Jenna turned around surprised, noticing the concern in his voice. She sat down on the bed again and gently palmed over his head what made him chirr sleepily.

    “Tork took it from me after I rescued you, as a form of punishment I guess. How are you feeling?” she asked softly whereat Set just grunted annoyed.

    “Again?” But he was stuck for an answer, only his antennae were trembling fidgety. Jenna leaned closer and eyed him scrutinizing. The throbbing vein was gone and the color was back in his face which was reassuring. Nevertheless she frowned and decided to bring his twitchyness to Nemon’s attention. Maybe he had just lost too much blood and not gotten enough sleep over the last days. She kissed him placating and stood up.

    “I have to go to MedBay and work… do me a favor and get some more sleep, you really look like you could use it.” She asked and locked the door behind her with a heavy heart. Without her Chronometer no one would be able to get inside or out but she doubted that the metal would stand any chance against a genuine attack from the Irken.

She was the first one to arrive at the MedBay for a change, despite Nemon of course. The Ilenian gave her a smile but after a short glance at her shoulder his face grew worried.

    “What happened? Did he hurt you?” the anger in his usually so gentle voice made her halt for a second. When he palpated her shoulder, feeling over the smarting bruise, she realized what he was talking about and shook her head with a flush rising to her cheeks.

    “Uhm… no, that’s… that’s quite normal.” She explained baldly what had Nemon pale. But he simply nodded and had another look at the spot.

    “U-huh.” He muttered matter-of-fact.

    “Nemon, how much do you know about Irken physiology?” she began hopeful and he actually gave her a crooked grin.

    “Oh, thanks to that invader a lot more, although I have to admit I learned quite a share about his species long ago. Why?” his look turned distraught and shot down to her belly, eyes widening in terror, “He is  _sterile_ , isn’t he?!”

Jenna nodded quickly, waving her hands to get him off this train of thoughts, she feared he was close to a heart attack because of her.

    “Just as every Irken, don’t worry! No, it’s not about  _that_ , I’m just asking because he’s acting… weird lately.” She told Nemon about her theory that it might have something to do with Set changing, and he listened quietly, only nodding here and there. When she was done he scratched his chin.

    “So he hasn’t shown any other physical symptoms besides the twitching? Like and itch in his back or bloodshot eyes? Hmm… well I’d have to look more into that and see if that’s commonly observed in deserting Irkens that precedes a rejection of their Paks. I think it’s best if you kept an eye on him and told me immediately when it’s getting worse.”

She nodded relieved and could finally get to work.

 At least so long until Tork showed up and called for her. A bit nervous she followed the Commander out into the hallway. The Vortian seemed to be uneasy himself how to broach the subject troubling him visually.

    “Jenna… is everything going alright so far?” he asked and she nodded smiling. “Oh, great… so, here’s the thing kid, I don’t want to keep you on tenterhooks: Set might still be a prisoner on this ship but because of that the crew demands to know what’s going to happen to him now. He  _is_  undeniably a wanted criminal and sworn enemy of the Resistance, and there  _is_  quite the bounty on his head after all.” He paused when her face stiffened and she got ready for a retort. Tork raised his hands to stop her. “But since I already thought you might react anything but  _delighted_  I didn’t agree to putting him into cryo-stasis or execute him or hand him in to the Tallest – like hell would I risk getting anywhere near that blasted armada! Anyway, you’re part of this crew now und as such you have the right to be heard in this matter; so I’m asking you: what’s  _your_  suggestion? Do you think it’s possible that you could talk him into joining us? I reckon he must be just as mad at his leaders as you are.”

Jenna shook her head, disappointed.

    “Set still thinks that this is all a misunderstanding despite everything that happened. He… would rather die than join the Resistance.” Her courage sank with every word. Would the rebels possibly lock him up in their base if he was of no use to them or even kill him to send a message? She had to buy some time until Nemon could tell her anything new about his state.

“But I imagine he would help out on the ship if I asked him to, just to not get separated from me again. If I can get this through his head I see a good chance for him to at least earn his own rations.” She proposed and Tork’s stern face got a tad less tensed.

    “Well, then at least no one could complain about him being a drain on our pockets… and it would further scatter the crew’s fear. The question is: where could we use him… why don’t you take him to the flight-deck later? I guess we can easily find something suitable there.” With this he took his leave and Jenna stayed behind, even more nervous than before, if not downright anxious.

Taking Set down to the flight-deck of all things, to  _Feorn_ , appeared a risk far too great than she felt she could handle.

She resolved on first asking him if he was even willing to cooperate on these terms and quickly deregistered from work, explaining to Nemon what was going on. He expressed his concern about taking Set anywhere near Feorn, similar to her own, but believed that she was important enough to him that the Irken would at least try to prevent a second separation from her.

However before returning to her quarter Jenna went down to the mess hall to get some snacks. Satiated Set was a lot easier to negotiate with as she had noticed on multiple occasions.

He stood by the window when she opened the door and he had put his armor back on. Jenna couldn’t help but wonder how he must feel… stranded in a place that all his instincts wanted to destroy and only a tiny human was keeping him from following through. She came to the conclusion that he felt the same as she had back then; torn from everything familiar, constantly in danger of getting killed and without any control over it.

She felt a hard lump in her throat as she approached him and wrapped her arms around his middle. Set waited until she parted before slowly turning around. His gaze immediately fell upon the snacks and his antennae rose joyfully.

    “I thought you must be half starved…” she said softly and handed him the food. The Irken gave it a scrutinizing glare from every side and took an even more careful bite. A pleased grin curled his lips and he sat down on the bed, nibbling the donuts with relish. Jenna stripped her shirt down to wash it in the sink in the bathroom. She still had to talk to Car to find a better solution for cleaning her laundry and getting more clothes in general. At least Nemon had finally figured out how to invent a form of tampon, after she had talked to him about that delicate matter with her head burning red like a cherry. The thought of having to adduce Set the concept of her period, and the fact that she wouldn’t let him even touch her during it, still gave her belly-aches.

With a fresh top she joined him, watching him eat up. Set already put the last donut in his mouth and licked the sugar off his fingers, curling his long tongue around them. After he was done he gave her a wolfish grin.

    “How about afters?” he purred furtive and she rolled her eyes with a sigh but obediently crawled onto his lap. The more satisfied he was the better.

Other than last night he took his time with her, what apparently was more fun to him than reaching climax himself. It all concluded in Jenna lifting her sweat-drenched shirt from the floor disgruntled – yet deeply satisfied nonetheless.

    “Dangit, that had just dried…” she complained hoarse and sank back strung out on Set’s chest, who had found the crumpled-up pack of cigarettes in the depths of her backpack. At the familiar sight she remembered what she had wanted to ask him yesterday. “Set, what happened to SIR?” she asked carefully but he just shrugged, trying to light the cigarette with the spark of two cables he had just ripped out of a panel in the wall. “And could you please stop trashing our room?” she added sighing.

    “If he’s still active I can’t locate him, so I’m assuming he’s bought it.” Set answered indifferently, managing to light the cigarette. Jenna wasn’t sure if smoking was a good idea since they couldn’t just open a window to let in some fresh air but he could explain her in amazing detail that Vortians had a very effective air-filtering system installed in nearly every part of their ships because of the almost obsessive urge of most Vortians to constantly tinker and experiment that would often cause thick smoke. At her question on how they would detect fires that way he just shrugged again.

She thought about how to bring up the actual subject.

    “Uhm, so Tork had a talk with me just now. He said that you, if you don’t want to get locked up again, should help out on the ship. Just like me.” She added when he only stared at her blankly. Set frowned.

   “You mean I’m supposed to grind away as a slave in here? Yeah,  _right_!” he snarled outraged and sat upright so abruptly that she rolled off his chest.

    “Set, don’t be stupid! They would never dare to treat you beneath your dignity in any way since they’re still afraid you’re going to run amok at the next best opportunity, what is completely relatable to me because you’re acting like a total dick! You owe these people your life for fuck’s sake!” she grabbed his good arm with both her hands, forcing him to turn around to her. “None of them wants to risk any casualty! It would end in you being dead, and- and me probably being dead as well because I vouched for your ass! And on top of that a whole lot of the crew would be dead, too. I for one don’t want to die.” she said with shaking voice even though she knew that the rebels would never lay a finger on her. Cast her out maybe, yes, but they wouldn’t kill her.

Set was still baring his teeth but he didn’t look as determined anymore. She could see his thoughts working behind his high forehead when he finally pushed her back into the sheets, running his finger through her hair distractedly.

    “I don’t want you to die either…” he muttered indignant and cradled her jealous. Jenna had to put her head back to get some air at least and returned his cuddle.

    “I promise we’ll find a way… maybe they’ll let us go if we just pretend to be on their side for long enough.” She whispered conspirationally and hoped he would buy it. Yet it wasn’t her intention to leave the rebels anytime soon. On their own they would be a way too easy target for his pursuers.

That idea seemed to be much more to Set’s liking for he chirped surprised and looked down at her with wide eyes.

    “Hey… you’re smarter than I thought…” he rasped so serious that she punched him on the chest.  

    “Of course I am! Actually I can even fly a fighter jet now! How you like  _them_  apples?” she replied and waited for another surprised chirr.

But Set only cocked a brow.

    “What are  _apples_? And who, pray tell, managed to get that into your teeny-tiny brain?” he asked curiously. Jenna flinched involuntarily and wasn’t fast enough to come up with a convincing lie when he had already put two and two together from her reaction.

“The Djelb…” he hissed so furiously that she could feel the thundering growl vibrating in his chest. “Oh yes… just what I’d expect of that  _frog_ … pinching everything in his sight!”

Jenna punched him again, serious this time. Set looked down stunned.

    “That sounds more like  _your_  species, don’t you think?” she spat out and knew the same second she had made a  _big_  mistake. The Irken narrowed his eyes to small slits and bared his teeth.

    “What. Was. That?” His voice got dangerously low but she stuck her chin out defiantly.

    “You Irkens are greedy. You see something you want, you take it! In this very moment you are  _pinching_  more and more planets and what for? Why are you doing that?!” she wanted to know and heard him taking in air for an answer, but then he stopped. She stared at him in disbelief.

“You don’t even know it, do you? You have no idea why you destroyed all these worlds and still you just kept going…” she uttered feebly and looked away.

Set snorted angrily but in that moment Jenna’s Chronometer rang.

“Yes?” she said picking up the call, glad for the interruption.

    “Tork here, I’m on my way to the hangar. Meet me there, both of you.” The Commander ordered short-spoken and hung up before she could even say something. Jenna felt sick. Confronting Set with the pilots now…

He had listened in however.

    “Hangar, hm? Well, looks like the Commander almost wants me to tear this Djelb apart with my bare hands.” He said sinister and gave an evil laugh. She wheeled around, her eyes cold and adamant.

    “If you do that I’m going to kill you.” She hissed full of hatred and that left him speechless for once. Jenna stood up slowly without averting her icy glare.

Set grunted and looked away. He never thought that Jenna would ever dare to threaten him openly like this. It reminded him too much of the scene back in his lab where she had thrown the bottle at him. His urge to actually kill her had overwhelmed him at that time and he hadn’t felt like himself anymore. He never wanted to experience that ever again.

Without a word he followed her down to the  _Rebellion_ ’s flight-deck while trying to suppress his rage. At least so that he wouldn’t feel like wreaking havoc anymore.         

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dun-dun-duuuuun!   
> can I get some bets up in here who would win a fight?


	47. Guilt - Pt. 2

### \- 20 – Guilt

#### Part 2

 

Set gaped when they entered the vast hangar housing the  _Rebellion_ ’s flight deck; he never would’ve imagined that the rebels were this well organized and above all heavily armed. In the blink of an eye he had counted the operative fighters and came to the concerning conclusion that the Tallest were underestimating the threat the Resistance posed!

Jenna ignored the ground crew’s outraged reactions as well as those of the pilots with a defiant indifference as she walked over to Tork who was talking to a couple of techs in front of a grounded jet in repairs. He noticed the sudden, quite startled, change of expressiosn on their faces and turned around unruffled.

    “Jenna… I reckon you were successful then.” He commented and cast Set an appraising glance. The Irken could barely suppress a hiss down in his throat but nodded.

    “If it’s necessary for me to work during my…  _stay_ … I will cooperate of course.” He said strained, yet he couldn’t help but give the flight deck another marveling look. “To be honest I am rather impressed by your fleet… how many fighters do you have in reserve?” he asked curiously and one of the techs warningly placed a hand on Tork’s shoulder.

    “He’s just trying to spy on us, Commander!” he snapped whereat Jenna shot him an angry glare. However Tork just returned Set’s gaze placid.

    “On this ship another hundred. But the  _Rebellion_  isn’t even the flagship of your entire fleet. That would be the  _Vengeance_ , our Admiral’s very own ship. At the moment we’re just scanning this quadrant for more refugees and resources before returning to our home base.” His frankness astonished Jenna just as much as the two techs who were openly gaping at their Captain in shock. Set on the other hand only nodded.

    “Are you still using the twofold fusion-cores for the jet’s engines?” He asked and approached the jet. The eyes of the by standing crew members followed his every move warily. Tork grinned, apparently he was taking a liking to Set’s forthright personality.

    “Fourfold now; basically the same concept and schematics. Only much more efficient in their performance than the old tech.” he stepped beside the giant Irken and opened the jet’s cowling with the assistance of a very reluctant technician. Intrigued Set inspected the machinery. Jenna exhaled relieved. At least Set didn’t seem to be completely loath to the idea of working anymore.

Tork let him demonstrate how he would go about disassembling the cores and putting them back together, and they talked about a whole lot of other stuff Jenna didn’t have the slightest idea of whatsoever. Then Set suddenly rubbed his chin in thought and connected some of the cables in a different way. The techs were already gasping to object but when the jet gave a soft hum they halted in stun.

    “If you cross the connections the fusion-fluxes tend to tap each other which will resolve in a considerable loss of power that can prematurely exhaust the cores in the long run. It's better to keep the cables apart from each other.” Set explained with the calm, slightly irritated voice of a teacher illustrating the fundamental principles of nuclear-fusion-physics for the umpteenth time. Completely flabbergasted the techs stared at him and almost ran each other down when they both hurried towards the jet at the same time, armed with scanners. Bewildered one of them gave Tork a nod.

    “He’s right… no more energy dissipation outwards… why didn’t  _we_  think of that?!” his skepticism turned into excitement and the Commander chuckled in content.

    “So it’s settled then. You can start tomorrow.” He said and took his leave, but not before giving Jenna another approving nod. While the techs tinkered further with the jet Set came back to her, looking expectant. She just smiled and her shoulders sank down with the tension leaving her body.

    “I’m so proud of you.” She said quietly and wanted to hug him, but refrained from doing so remembering where they were. Instead she took his hand and dragged him along to the back of the hangar where her jet had ended up. Jenna made a sad face; the pitch-black lacquer was still covered in ugly scratches and dents; apparently no one had felt particularly enthusiastic to whip it back into shape for her.

Set snorted.

    “Who in the world  _butchered_  this pitiful thing?” he grated gloating and got an angry look from her. “What? It’s true, just look at it!” he tried to defend himself but it only made her look even angrier.

    “That is  _my_  jet. You know? The one I  _butchered_  trying to break the fall of your crashing ship so you wouldn’t die.” She snapped and he blinked confused.

    “Break the fall?” then he understood and furrowed his brows. “Why did you do that you could’ve hurt yourself! Or die even!” the Irken blustered. His sudden outrage startled Jenna, she had expected him to find her maneuver reckless but not that Set would get so worked up about it. In an attempt to calm him down she raised her hands.

    “Hey… it worked out, didn’t it? So everything’s…”,  _fine_ , she had wanted to say, but suddenly something blue stepped between them and she was so scared she forgot to breathe. But Jenna immediately realized why Feorn was interfering: they hadn't been talking in Vortian but  _Human_  and since Set had gotten louder and louder Feorn must’ve had thought he was threatening her.

Quickly she grabbed his arm and tried to pull him back.

“Feorn! Everything’s okay, we were just…” But he didn’t listen. Alarmed Jenna saw the way they both were staring each other down, challenging, and that foreboding vein on Set’s temple was back again. All of a sudden his hand darted up, grabbing Feorn’s shoulder, who bared his teeth at the same second and hissed so viciously that small drops of venom were spraying from his fangs.

    “How  _dare_ you…” the Irken snarled menacingly already raising his other hand.

    “You’re one to talk…” Feorn hissed back not any less furious and grabbed Set’s arm, clenching his right hand into a fist.

It was dead silent around them and the other pilots held their breath. They wouldn’t hesitate to come to Feorn’s aid if the Irken would fight dirty, but they would allow the inevitable conflict to unfold.

Yet Set wouldn’t have been able to pierce the Djelb with his spider legs even if he wanted; his Pak was only barely responding to him and just putting on his suit was getting harder and harder every day now since the crash happened. Nevertheless he wouldn’t leave one barbel unharmed on this damned Djelb!

    “Alright!  _Fine_!” Jenna suddenly shouted and simply turned around and walked away. “Whatever, tear each other apart, I don’t give a shit! If you want to act like stupid brats,  _good_ , go on! I got patients to tend to!” With this she stormed off. Feorn and Set both stared at her perplexed, looked at each other and slowly let go with utmost reluctance. Even the other pilots looked rather disappointed. Set immediately followed her and grabbed her hand.

    “Hey, it’s not my fault he has to stick his nose into everything!” he protested spiteful and took a surprised step back when she wheeled around and jabbed her finger against his chest, what hurt her more than him because he was wearing his armor.

    “Oh my god, Set, just cut it out already! After all you sort of owe it to Feorn as well that you’re still alive! So quit acting like you’re the victim here or I swear I will…”

She didn’t get to finish her threat; her jet behind them exploded in a cloud of metal shrapnel when something burst straight out of the engine block with insane force, and shot straight at Jenna. Just then she thought noticing a silvery flash when all hell broke loose around her.

Set yelled something over the noise, then her vision suddenly got blue again, the world toppled over and she hit the ground hard enough to feel a glaring pain in her head, stunning her for a moment. Through her disorientation she could hear the faint sound of something being torn apart over the erupting din and Feorn’s blood-curdling screams.

They cut through her mind like daggers until they were the only thing she sensed. Not the blood drenching her hair or the deafening gunshot right above her, only those piercing screams of agony that filled her head. Somehow she managed to get up and she froze on the spot. Suddenly it was dead quiet.

Feorn was lying in a pool of violet blood that was spreading at a terrifying pace. She screamed his name, her voice cracking, and she rushed to his side, crawling through the blood. With shaking hands she bent over him and didn’t know what to do, her mind was left blank when she saw his injuries. His whole body was carved open by cuts and slashes, some of them so deep she could see the bones shining through and she felt sick. So much blood, way too much, running and running, if she didn’t do something right now he would…

    “Feorn!” she cried out hoarsely and yanked the shirt she was wearing over her head to press it on the wounds – oh god so many, way too many, what was she supposed to do?! Her head darted around. “Get Nemon!  _Hurry_!” she yelled panicked and one of the pilots wheeled around. Jenna didn’t notice the tears ceaselessly streaming down her face and just tried to cover even more wounds with her shirt and hands but they were simply too many and too deep to stop the bleeding.

“F-Feorn, hold… hold on, okay? N- Nemon’s gonna be here any second, he’s coming okay?  _Please_  stay with me!” her voice was breaking out of despair and helplessness. Slowly he opened his eyes and flinched, his face was smeared with the blood of countless cuts and gray from pain.

    “…Jenna…” he uttered and his gaze grew spaced out as he raised a hand and placed it on her cheek. She shook her head in disbelief.

    “Wh- what happened? The explosion…” she stammered confused and looked around. Without really realizing it she stared at the smoking remains of a small robot, covered over and over with Feorn’s blood. A giant bullet hole had torn his body apart, the once red glowing lens was now offline, staring emptily back at her. Jenna’s eyes widened in shock and she gasped, finally understanding.

“SIR?! B- but… I thought…” she took a sobbing breath and clutched the hand on her cheek when she realized what had happened. The robot must’ve followed her and snuck on board her fighter when she had hefted Set into it back on the ice moon.  _She_ had brought him here! “Oh no…  _no_ …” Jenna whimpered distraught and closed her eyes.

Feorn chuckled quietly until he coughed and struggled for air horrifyingly loud. Startled she pulled him up and supported his chest the best she could. “Feorn!” she cried out scared and looked around again. What was taking Nemon so long!?

    “Do… you know…” he took a rattling breath, blood pouring from his gills with every strained intake, “why I… named the… jet…  _Lightwing_?” he panted and wiped the tears from her cheek with his thumb, leaving violet streaks on her skin. Jenna shook her head fiercely.

    “Don’t talk! Please, Feorn, don't…” she implored him and stroked over his head; she was begging him not to say, what she feared were, his last words.

    “My life was… dark. For so long I… had been living in darkness, without hope of any... light.” His eyes glazed over, the hand on her cheek slowly sank down. Jenna grabbed it tightly and pressed it against her lips, sobbing uncontrollably now. Feorn smiled. “And then you came. You were probably the most pitiful being I’d ever seen. With your sad eyes and all… all those scars. The visible ones and the ones you had on your soul. I… wanted so badly… to heal them for you. But I didn’t notice at first that instead it was you who was closing mine… you asked me… if there was anything you could do for me. Yet you’ve already done so much for me… you brought my light back, Jenna…” His voice was a mere whisper now, she bowed down to listen to him, her hands frantically trying to keep the life inside his body, pressing onto the wounds. “You were my hope… my  _Lightwing_.” He gently put a hand on her nape and pulled her down until his lips lay on hers and she could taste the bitter blood on them but she refused to break away.

There was so much she wanted to tell him and yet she couldn’t say a single word, too afraid to break this fragile moment, too afraid that confessing her own feelings would seal his fate.

Suddenly the hand on her neck loosened, the cold lips under hers as well. Jenna snapped her eyes open and recoiled. Feorn’s gaze didn’t follow her, the radiant red and gold of his eyes had dulled into a milky, brown haze.       

    “Feorn?” she breathed, touching his face and she felt her throat constringing to a point where it hurt so much that a loud scream erupted from her chest. It was short, shocked and so heartrending that many of those standing next to her turned around and covered their faces in grief. From somewhere in the hangar they heard Nemon shout, but Jenna didn’t notice anything around her.

“Wake up, Feorn! Y- you’re just  _unconscious…_ Feorn please, please stay with me… don’t go. Don’t do that to me… don't  _leave_  me!” she sobbed, her voice was breaking over and over until it was only a loud lament, rising and subsiding in a gut-wrenching cry.

It had happened again. The pain was familiar to her and it was deep; it reminded her of Ria who she had also begged not to die, who had also given her life to save her. Again she had lost someone, someone she needed, someone she loved and who had gotten involved in all of it onlybe cause if her. Again, she had killed somebody.

  Set looked around alarmed. That was bad… more than bad! He couldn’t use spider legs in defense and even if the shotgun he had used to offline SIR was still smoking he doubted that it would be of any help against an angry mob. He wanted to walk over to Jenna, more than anything he wanted to be with her so she would stop screaming. The sound was clawing painfully at his brain, it paralyzed him and just didn’t sound  _right_!

But he didn’t dare to move a single muscle; all around him there was growling and muttering, and more than once the pilots stared at him full of rage and hatred even though the situation had them all numbed and too stupefied to react right away. Set’s eyes darted back to Jenna who was curled up over the dead Djelb crying and shaking violently. Confused he looked from the pool of blood over to SIR.

The robot had tried to attack  _Jenna_ , not Feorn, but the Djelb had thrown himself in the line, pushing her out of the way and had taken the blow with his own body. And although Set reacted faster than anyone it had already been too late. The robot’s razor sharp blades went through his flesh without any resistance before the Irken was able to snatch the rifle from one of the pilots and destroy his own SIR unit from point blank range. He wouldn’t obey his yelled order which could only mean that he had been damaged in the crash and wasn't functioning properly anymore…

    “Out of the  _way_!” Nemon shouted and jerked Set from his thoughts. When the Ilenian had pushed his way through the crowd he stopped thunderstruck and clasped at his chest in shock. The first aid kit he was carrying hit the ground with a loud clang that seemed awfully out of place. Jenna didn’t notice it, she didn’t even flinch but kept crying, rocking back and forth holding Feorn in her arms. Slowly Nemon sank on one knee and gently touched her shoulder.

“Jenna…” he uttered with trembling voice but she shook his hand off and threw herself over Feorn’s chest, refusing to let go of him.

It stung Set. At first he thought he had really been hurt but when he felt over his chest it was unharmed yet the terrible pain stayed, and it even intensified when he saw how Jenna took the Djelb’s face into her hands and kissed him although she knew he was already dead.

“Jenna, there’s nothing you can do.” Nemon said mechanically and pulled her away from the lifeless body with astonishing strength. She fought the hands holding her but quickly lost her will to fight and sank feebly against him.

    “Why... Nemon? Why does... this keep... happening? I... I killed-” she suddenly broke off and he could react just in the nick of time before she hit the ground fainting. He called two guards to his aid and then he looked over to Set. Grief and hatred were both gleaming in his eyes when he stood up with Jenna in his arms and walked over to him. Frozen the Irken took the unconscious human from him and pressed her protectively towards his body.

    “Take her back to her quarter. Don’t let him out. Tell me when she’s awake again.” The last bit was directed at Set when the guards already pushed him in the back. Only now the pilots dared to approach their dead comrade and some of them actually sank down on their knees, hiding their tears behind their hands. The stinging pain inside his chest had subsided a little but still he felt strangely unwell, as if he was sick.

It had been an accident, no doubting that… and yet he felt like he was somehow responsible for Feorn’s death, the sorrow and for Jenna breaking down like that. Set furrowed his brows deeply as he tried to shake this thought.

It was absurd! He was absolutely not at fault; the Djelb didn’t  _had to_  throw himself in the line of fire! The aggrieving feeling however stayed when he stepped through the door to their room and was suddenly alone with Jenna.

Uncertain of what to do he gently put her down on the bed and sat beside her, patiently waiting, his antennae perked up highly to notice any sound or change while he observed her searchingly to make sure she was really unharmed. Moreover it distracted him from this strangely sickening feeling and the fresh, burning itch in his Pak.

He caught himself thinking about what Jenna would do when she woke up… startled he bent over her and listened to her breathing. Good… so she hadn’t just died all of a sudden. Irked he shook his head and snorted. Why in the world would she die just like that? She wasn’t even injured!

But when he remembered her screaming after Feorn had died he felt a chill running down his spine. He had never heard anything like that in his life, not even from her although he had quite often heard her cries of pain before, but never something as haunting as this sound…

Set stopped in his pondering. He didn’t even know how to describe the feeling her wail had evoke in him, and he couldn’t re-simulate it no matter how hard he tried. Gradually a suspicion started to creep up on him. Not a real alarm, more like a disturbance that something wasn’t alright with him, just like Jenna had hinted at.

He straightened his shoulders with a gruff jerk. Nothing his Pak couldn’t cure! If he simply rested for a while the problem would solve itself in no time just like it had always been the case with injuries or sickness, and then he would be able to figure this all out. So he leaned back against the bed’s headrest, crossed his arms and called up the inner interface of his Pak. Pleased he noted that the system’s maintenance program was still accessible and ready for start-up. Soon everything would be just the way it was before…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> .....  
>  I really tried to figure out what to say about this chapter and couldn't come up with something satisfying.  
> I'm sorry?  
> Don't spear me?
> 
> Nope, there's nothing I could say that would bring comfort to those of you who must be raging mad at me right now  
> and I don't even blame you, I feel shitty on my own and believe me when I say: I cried a lot only writing this one and the next chapters.  
> I can only say so much as that Feorn's death needed to happen because character developement and so on. Sounds like a pretty bad  
> excuse, I know, just be patient for the next chapters and you will find out why.
> 
> and even if I might talk myself deeper and deeper into my own demise right now, let me tell you that my heart is pounding in my chest at this very moment that I upload this chapter because I'm so anxious of your reactions and I had a brief moment when I simply wanted  
> to quit and was like "Nope, fuck it, I can't rewrite 70 pages and I can't deal with everyone hating me, I'm out!"   
> But I pulled through with it and now I'm sitting here on pins and needles.
> 
> I guess this is one of the moments when you realize, as a writer, that you have to make your own decisions: Do I want to write something that pleases everyone just for the sake of keeping everyone happy or do I want to have an interesting, diverting storyline that is conclusive in the long run and has the protagonists develop?
> 
> *continues to sit on pins and needles, biting nails*


	48. Guilt - Pt. 3

###  - 20 – Guilt

#### Part 3

  
_A few moments later - Rebellion - Officer's Quarters  
_

Something abruptly woke Set from his half-sleep and he grunted confused. According to his biological clock it couldn’t have been more than an hour that had passed. He wanted to check how far his Pak was with the system repairs when he picked up a sound. It was quiet but his keen senses noticed it anyway. Curious he looked around and froze; Jenna had moved and was now lying on her side, her back turned on him and her legs closely drawn to her chest as if she was sleeping. But the shaking of her shoulders argued against that. Set laid his antennae back, he knew this well enough. She was crying.

Carefully he reached out and gently touched her shoulder. The shaking stopped and he was already about to lean back again when she suddenly chuted away from him, stood up and disappeared inside the small bathroom without a single word. With his eyes opened widely in complete bewilderment he just sat there and heard the door lock, then he jumped off the bed and stopped, standing in the middle of the room without really knowing what he had initially wanted to do. Not that long ago he would’ve immediately followed her without hesitation and kicked the door in!

But now there was just a strange whirl in his mind, made of insecure thoughts, indecisive considerations and parts emotions completely unknown to him that he couldn’t comprehend them before getting distracted by another thought. The only thing that kept him from losing it was the loud sobbing coming from behind the door now. Slowly Set sank back on the bed, resting his elbows on his knees, and stared out of the small window. He was supposed to inform that Ilenian doctor that Jenna was awake, he knew that, but he was petrified, paralyzed by the feelings rampaging through his brain. He just needed to rest a little longer…

   


Jenna couldn’t stop crying. Every time her tears seemed to run dry she saw Feorn’s smile before her eyes, felt the soft touch of his hand on her cheek and heard his last words only meant for her. He had died only for her. He had died only  _because of_  her. It was  _her_ fault.

And again a new wave of pain and desperation washed over her like a storm surge. She buried her face in her hands and wanted to muffle the sobs but all that came out of her chest was a soundless scream with her mouth wide open until she feared her jaw would dislocate but at least it eased the pain in her throat a bit, the aching in the back, as if someone was choking her from the inside. Then she took a shaking breath just to hiss it back out between her clenched teeth in a strained pant. She had the feeling the pain would simply tear her apart.

And she wished it would already.

She wanted it all to end, oh she would gladly give her  _life_  only to make this terrible pain, these horrible feelings of guilt go away! How was she supposed to ever look everyone straight in the face again?! It was all her fault, her fault alone, if she hadn’t brought Set onto the  _Rebellion_  SIR would’ve never followed them and Feorn hadn’t…

Why did she always have to  _ruin_ everything? That was what he had said to her the night before. Wasn’t it already enough that she had been torn from her family? That Ria had died because of her? Did she also have to lose what she thought she had finally found again? Why did she have to kill the ones she loved?

The blazing sensation of guilt caused an uncontrollable sobbing that wouldn’t stop and took her breath away until she fell into a fit of coughing. Her guts were protesting against the unsteady breathing and she shot forward to throw up into the toilet, her stomach convulsing so violently that she feared she was about to faint and desperately clutched the brim of the plumbing until she eventually stopped heaving up bile and foam.

As weak as a kitten she collapsed over the bowl and watched tears and spit dripping from her chin. Her head was spinning and she wanted so badly to faint again, wanted to suffocate on her stomach’s contents so she would never have to wake up again!

Suddenly it knocked loudly on the door and she flinched so hard she gashed her chin on the toilet seat. But she couldn’t answer, she had started to tremble again and only managed to utter a rasping sound what had actually meant to sound like “go away.” It knocked again more forceful now and the loud thump made her headache flare up in an excruciating pang. Now she screamed something in the door’s direction of which she didn’t knew herself what it was supposed to mean and thought she could hear faint voices outside. Did the rebels want to kill her now? Good.

But she didn’t have the strength anymore to stand up and open the door; again she sank to the ground exhausted and bedded her head onto the cold metal floor. It felt like all energy was slowly seeping out of her, all her warmth. And it was okay this way.

    “ _Jenna_? Open the door or I’ll have to ask Set to bash it down.” It was Nemon. Jenna thought it was strange, she had actually expected Tork with a whole squad of soldiers. Thus she didn’t respond and just stayed lying down, observing her skewed reflection in the toilet under the dim blue of the support lights. She frowned; there was something dark under her hands that felt wet but she was too tired to get up and clean herself…

The door didn’t burst open and wasn’t bashed down either. There only was a shrill metal screech, then the door slid back and the main light was turned on. Jenna yelped and curled up, hiding her face away from the glaring light blinding her eyes. Nemon uttered a shocked sound and she heard Set’s startled hiss when multiple hands already reached for her to lift her off the ground.

    “What did you  _do_!?” Set shouted appalled and she fought his hands angrily. Why couldn’t he just leave her alone for once? Nemon tightened his grip and she felt his other hand feeling for her neck.

    “When did she smash the mirror? Did you notice?” he asked quickly but only got a helpless grunt back.

    “I have no idea, maybe when I went outside to send for you, she had been in there for hours already!”

Confused Jenna raised her head. What mirror? Then she remembered that she had wanted to remove the Irken brand from her wrist…

    “She got the artery, it’s bleeding too briskly… I have to close the wound right here or she’ll die.” Before Jenna could protest against that she was pressed to the ground and her left arm pinned down painfully. She gave a shout and wanted to strike at them but Set only held her down firmer until she couldn’t move a muscle. Then her wrist suddenly went up in flames and she screamed agonized.

    “ _Stop_! Nemon, p- please stop! Let go-  _let go of me_!” she shrieked pleading and writhed under their hands, her stomach performing another jerk into her throat and again her mouth was filling with bitter acid, threatening to asphyxiate her.

    “Turn her head to one side and lift her shoulders or she’ll suffocate!” Nemon ordered Set and finally the bile ran out her mouth.

The burning however didn’t stop, not even when Nemon had already got back on his feet and was bellowing orders in his Chronometer. She opened her eyes and saw into Set’s which were wide open in shock and bewilderment. Feebly she fought his hands but he kept holding her, eventually picking her up from the ground to cradle her.

    “Why did you  _do_ that?” he asked stunned and thumbed over her forehead. He didn’t get an answer; she was crying again and turned her face away so he couldn’t look at her.

Set felt this strange sting in his chest again and clenched his teeth until the pain covered the sting. Still he felt sick, as if all of this was happening to him and not Jenna. How could he’d been so inobservant? But how could he have possibly known she was planning to  _kill_ herself?

Nemon darted past him and signalized Set to follow him. The Irken obeyed and followed the Ilenian quickly to the MedBay. The assistants were already waiting for them and took Jenna from his arms to put her on one of the stretchers, securing her wrists and ankles. She submitted to the precautionary measures without a fight but kept her eyes firmly closed.

The female Vortian, he had forgotten her name, was covering her mouth with her hands and shot him a horrified glare. Set recoiled and wanted to say something in his defense but then Nemon was back and snapped instructions whereat she rushed off. He stood in the middle of the room, helpless, until Nemon pointed agitated at one of the other biers. Slowly Set sank down on the stretcher and couldn’t avert his eyes from Jenna while the doctors treated her.

All of this seemed unreal to him, as if he was hallucinating. In the meantime he had even forgotten the itching in his Pak, instead the awful pain in his chest was back as well as the sickness. What was that kind of feeling? A foreshadowing that she would die? Slowly he shook his head; no, Nemon wasn’t hectic enough for that.

It took them some time to properly seal the cut in Jenna’s wrist and give her a sedative what made her fall asleep immediately. After that Nemon stood beside her for a long time, one hand on her neck, the other one placed on her forehead and his four eyes shut in concentration. Set kept his seat, staring at him, and waited. Finally Nemon sighed and lowered his hands while shaking his head. Concerned Set jumped to his feet but the Ilenian only asked him to follow him outside.

    “What’s with her? Is she sick?” he asked nervous and couldn’t keep his antennae from twitching. Nemon scrutinized him before rubbing his hands and sighing again.

    “Not exactly… Feorn’s death affected her worse than I could have imagined. The accident apparently caused a lot of her previous traumas to resurface, severely harming her in a psychological way. I suppose you know of Ria, the Irken saving her life in the arena?” Nemon asked and Set nodded, he had seen Ria and what happened to her when he had used the Mnemograph on Jenna after she woke up, the shared memories of her mind still a very vivid part of his own, especially the fear and pain she felt.

The Ilenian rubbed his face, he looked very tired. “I’m afraid she might blame herself for Feorn’s death and has somehow connected it to the events on the  _Massive_. We have to be extremely cautious and help her come to terms with it all, otherwise she could likely carry off irreversible damage to her psyche.” He gave him an urgent look. “You’re going to be a vital part of her recovery, Set, simply because you’re close to her in a way. You have to constantly keep an eye on her and remind her that it isn’t her  _fault_ those two people died. But it is even more important that she doesn’t go over to blaming  _you_ , and at some point she will.”

Set wanted to stage protest but Nemon raised his hands calmingly. “I know, your SIR unit was defect, I learned from some of the pilots that you tried to stop it but it wouldn’t obey you. Besides, you destroyed it yourself, risking your own life by grabbing that gun and startling the guards like that. You’re not at fault either, Set, but you have to tell me when Jenna starts acting as if you are. She mustn’t project her feelings of guilt onto you, it would harm her more than anything else, and of course you as well.”

While he was listening to the doctor he didn’t really understand how he conceived that Jenna would blame  _him_ , after all she knew that he hadn’t ordered SIR to attack the Djelb!

Yet he nodded. Nemon sighed again and took him back to his quarter, promising him to contact him once Jenna would wake up.

   


Jenna had woken up but refused to open her eyes. The more she focused on going back to sleep however the more awake she got until she couldn’t stop a dry gulp. Immediately a cool hand was placed on her forehead and Nemon mumbled something.

    “I know you’re awake, Jenna.” He noted quietly and his voice sounded weary. She wanted to say something but had to grimace to not burst into tears all over again. The hand on her head was soothing but more than anything else she wanted to be alone right now to mourn Feorn in peace and quiet until this awful pain would stop raging inside her body.

“You don’t have to talk if you don’t want to, but I want you to  _listen_ : Feorn was a good friend to many on this ship and his death affected all of us gravely. I had to send Car and Reliat to their rooms because they were too distraught and I don’t exactly feel  _terrific_ myself but somebody has to stay in the MedBay, now more than ever. I can very well imagine how you feel and I’ll understand it if you want to be alone. But you have to stop  _blaming_ yourself for Feorn’s death or you won’t ever get out of that cycle of grief and despair… do you understand? Feorn wouldn’t want you to hold yourself at fault for his death. He also wouldn’t want you to take your own  _life_ because then his sacrifice would have been for nothing! Yes, he died protecting you, but this wasn’t your fault. It was an accident. It was a tragic and horrible accident and I know you think this only happened because of you and that you couldn’t save him… but sometimes there’s just nothing you can do and believe me, I know the feeling of helplessness and even guilt when losing someone you love. You’re not alone Jenna, we will all be there for you if you’d just let us.” He spoke softly and sad and that made it even worse for her; she would have been able to stand it if he was scolding her or even mad. But this goddamn  _compassion_ and this sincere condolement in his voice only reminded Jenna of how miserable she was feeling.

With a jerk she sat up and flung herself against the Ilenian. Her hands clawed into the white coat and she pressed her face up against his chest to muffle her tears and cries in the stiff cloth. Nemon staggered briefly before regaining his balance and wrapping his arms around her.

“I know… I miss him, too.” He breathed choking and exhaled shakily.

They stayed like this for a moment, Jenna’s sobbing gradually subsided and she leaned against him exhausted until Nemon gently stroked her head and slowly parted from her. With heavy steps he walked over to his desk and took something out of a cupboard behind it.

When he put a glass next to her on the stretcher she raised her head; the Ilenian poured both of them a clear liquid that smelled so unmistakably alcoholic that she immediately downed the glass in one gulp and held it out to him again.

After her third she hesitantly chinked glasses with him and her head had already gotten heavier, yet her thoughts weren’t any lighter.

    “You know, I- I never thought that somethin’ so  _horrible_ could ever happen to me, like, the stuff you hear in the news… someone losin’ their family in a fire or the own child dyin' at birth… Sure, you’re always scared that those things might happen to you… but I was always confident that it would never really come to that.” She slurred hoarse and rubbed her face tired.

Nemon was sitting astride his chair, his arms crossed on the backrest his forehead resting against them. He was swaying his glass distrait. “And then out of nowhere I get  _abducted_  by an  _alien_ ,” she counted on the fingers of her free hand, “I get raped, no wait; before that my  _mind_ gets raped. Then I get branded, tortured, stabbed, almost get raped again and have to fight for my life. I lose the first person who treated me with nothing but empathy and  _kindness_ since my abduction. I get stabbed again and  _die_ … I come back with nothing but excruciating pain in my body, and then I betray the one who abducted, tortured and raped me, who saved my life and whom I’ve started to like in a strange, perverse way. And now this…” her voice faltered and she quickly downed the rest of her drink.

Nemon had lifted his head and was looking at her saddened.

    “You’ve really been through more than anyone here… and yet you are  _here_ and  _alive_. Feorn recognized your true strength before I did. He has… he had a certain intuition for sorrow, perhaps because he was hiding his own so well…” his gaze got stern and he reached out for her hand, grasping it tightly. “Jenna, despite all that has happened to you you’re still here and even though you lost a lot of blood just now you’re body refused to quit. You have a strength beyond your own comprehension and although you might not be aware of it yet I can clearly see it now. And even if you think you can’t go on without him, do it  _for_ him. You told me you don’t know what love is anymore, but if you have only had the  _slightest_ wisp of feelings for Feorn you will carry on for crying out loud! You may not bear the blame for his death but you  _owe_ it to him to stay alive.” He had raised his voice and she noticed he was slurring as well but to her his words were so clear as if he was completely sober. Because they made sense.

Jenna swallowed the lump in her throat and nodded slowly. The glass slipped from her hand and bumped onto the stretcher. Nemon grunted and handed it back to her to pour her another.

“Tomorrow the crew is going to pay their last respects to him, I want you to be there.” He said, calmer now, but she flinched like he had just slapped her across the face.

    “How? How is he going to be…” she started but he already nodded.

    “You probably don’t know how that takes place in space… since he was a pilot his body will be put in his jet, the jet is set on autopilot and they will place an antimatter-charge on board, so there won’t be anything left.” He explained and she creased her face.

    “I’d rather we bury him on Leros…” she muttered and took another sip. The Ilenian gave a quiet sigh.

    “Believe me, everyone would; but the armada left Leros completely devastated. You wouldn’t want him to stay in a place like that. No, the endless expanse of the galaxy was Feorn’s home, it’s what he would have wanted anyway." With a scrutinizing look he put a palm on her neck. “You seem to be doing a lot better now… think I can take you back to Set? He seemed to be rather troubled by you state… I never thought I’d see an Irken this  _worried_ about a living creature.”

At first she wanted to shake her head but nodded instead. She didn’t want to explain to him why she was blaming Set for a lot of this, too. Although… she wasn’t straight up mad at him, it was more like a strange apathy that came over her when she thought of him, studded with a slight reluctance. Actually she had no strength and no wish trying to change him anymore, it all seemed so pointless to her now. Nevertheless she would go back, and if it was just to reassure Nemon.

Relieved he emptied his glass and put it carelessly on the ground.

On their way to her quarter she had to catch Nemon a few times, Ilenians didn’t seem to stomach much alcohol. Jenna asked the guard in front of her room to take the drunken doctor back to his own quarter and to notify the Commander that the MedBay was currently vacant. She was rather surprised of how composed she was telling all of this and waited for the soldier to walk around the corner with Nemon supporting on his shoulder before unlocking the door with her blood-smeared Chronometer. When she took a closer look at it she realized that the blood was violet and she dropped it in horror.

At just that moment Set stepped out the door and opened his mouth in surprise to say something, but she shoved him away roughly and slumped on the bed, her face buried in the only pillow.

Bewildered the Irken gazed after her and finally picked up the Chronometer. Absentminded his finger brushed over the blood while his antennae perked to pick up even the faintest of noises. But Jenna wasn’t crying, not even sobbing. Insecure Set approached the bed and examined her searchingly.

    “Uhm… I… how are you?” he asked with a strangely staggering voice. She noticed it yet she didn’t care. The cold wave of hopelessness and grief had washed over her again and she just wanted to sleep if she wasn’t allowed to die. So she said nothing in turn but dug even deeper into the sheets.

Set flinched back, hurt.

Hold on, why was he feeling  _hurt_? He hadn’t been injured…

And yet the concept was almost like a mental picture. He  _was_ hurt. But he couldn’t make any sense of it, every time he tried to think about it more he was punished with headaches and the terrible itching inside his Pak, why he simply lay down on the other side of the bed silent and stared at Jenna’s shoulder she had turned on him immediately. He knew she was refusing to talk to him but the usual fury didn’t stir. Since he had no idea how to react in any other way Set decided to call up the inner interface of his Pak again to check if there was any damage to be repaired.

    “Feorn’s… funeral is tomorrow. I will attend but I don’t think it’s good if you’d show up.”

At first he thought he had misheard, but her voice indeed sounded like it had long ago, when he was examining her, shortly after he had taken her… cold and hostile. The sudden sting it caused made some of his anger return.

    “You think so, huh?” he growled quietly and felt the strong urge to grab her shoulders and shake her so her brain would snap back into place. At the same time something told him that it would only make things worse and so he turned around on his other side with a pained hiss. His fingers dug into his shoulder until the glaring white pain smothered everything else and he felt hot blood under his fingertips.  
  
There was a buzzing in his head, like static, thus he couldn't hear Jenna gulping to fight back the tears and only give an annoyed grunt back herself. Set listened to the buzzing for a long time and it took even longer for him to drift off into something like an unconscious sleep.             

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :( 
> 
> Writing something so sad sure is exhausting... and even more when you're hyper-empathetic like I am.
> 
> I was listening nonstop to this amazing playlist, it really maked me cry ;_;  
> http://8tracks.com/klm225/no-one-ever-told-me-grief-felt-so-like-fear


	49. Guilt - Pt. 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ANNOUNCEMENT: Sunday 16th won't have a new chapter! It's the weekend in between my four final exams so I need this week to power through them! I'm sorry everyone but this is the last step in my journey to (finally) finish my apprenticeship and be able to get a job and I can't mess this up :)

###  - 20 – Guilt

#### Part 4

  
_The next Cycle - Rebellion - Flight deck_

  
The hangar was crowded like never before. It seemed as if the whole crew had gathered to do honour to Feorn and that simple fact alone dulled Jenna’s pain at least a little bit, even though it also made her cry again, seeing how many people were in mourning for him. Feorn had said he was hated by everyone for his responsibility in the downfall of Vort but in reality more of them had admired him for how relentless he was making atonements for what he had done.

Slowly she let her gaze wander over the rows and rows of attendants; Car was lying in Reliat’s arms and trembled, shaken by silent sobs. The pilots stood next to the fighter, ready to launch the programmed autopilot and close the hatch behind it so that Feorn could set forth on his last journey. Jenna felt herself reminded of the Vikings’ funeral rituals, where the fallen chief was laid to rest on a grand ship with all his riches and the ship would travel down the shore until it was lit up with a flaming arrow. Only there were no riches, the fighter was empty save for the metal coffin and the bomb placed inside.

Tork was standing before them, giving a speech. You could tell just by looking at him how moved he was himself as he talked about Feorn, who he was and how he had found his way to the rebels. He told about the countless times he had defended the Resistance against the Irken armada and his never ending vigor to support the Resistance’s cause. Yet the Commander struggled to find the right words and had to pause now and then to compose himself. His openly displayed dismay moved most of the crew members to tears, at least those capable of crying actual tears. The rest was just as moved and showed it in their own way. Jenna saw Quor, the Steelhunter, whose bio-lights had gone so dim now they looked black instead of bright red like usually.

Tork’s speech eventually came to an end and the pilots started the jet, steering it towards the flight pad. Jenna tensed up and wanted to stop them. She had to say something, had to  _do_  something because she was afraid she hadn’t done enough to really say goodbye to Feorn now. She didn’t notice how she started to hyperventilate, only when she felt Nemon’s arm wrapping around her shoulder her breathing slowed down and she had to turn away. She could hear the hatch closing with a hiss, heard the loud woosh of the take-off and then silence. She didn’t hear the explosion. There was nothing in that endless, cold void to carry the sound.

She was shaking all over.

    “Come…” Nemon said quietly and pulled her along.

Only when the doors of the MedBay opened she realized that Car and Reliat had followed them. Quietly the three of them looked at each other but no one had any energy left to burst into tears. Now they were all just exhausted and slowly began to overcome their shock. In silence they sat down on stools and stretchers and waited for Nemon to return with a bottle not unlike the one from yesterday, and finally they touched glasses without a word.

Reliat was the first to break the silence.

    “When I started working here, he scared the crap out of me on the first day. Simply lurched into the MedBay when I was alone with Car and pretended to be suffocating – before that I had bragged with all the operations I had assisted in already. I was so in panic that I just started to scream till he suddenly jumped to his feet. He was just shaking so much with laughter when he saw my face that he couldn’t keep up his charade.” He mumbled quietly. Car snorted a short laughter.

    “Me too. He never dared to prank me like that though, since I was Commander’s daughter and all. Yet I tried  _everything_  just so he would prank me once and I could threaten him to tell my dad so I’d have something on him…”

Hesitant they all took turns telling little anecdotes and even Nemon chipped in now and then. Only Jenna stayed silent and listened until it quieted down again.

    “I couldn’t stand him at first…” she just said into the silence. “He was just so…  _importunate_. Now I know that I simply couldn’t bear the fact that he was able to look right through me. One look and he knew what was going on. I felt weak in his presence, all my thoughts and my fears disclosed. Feorn knew me without me telling him anything.” She emptied her glass and closed her eyes in pain. Car slowly shook her head in disbelief.

    “You meant so much to him; just from the way he was looking at you all the time everyone could tell. I think he liked you even more than Nemon.” She cast the Ilenian a crooked grin and he laughed tired.

    “Oh well, I never really stood a chance against Jenna in the first place.” Then he got up and stored the bottle away again. “We should try to get some work done, it will distract us.” Everyone nodded at that and they got to spruce up the neglected MedBay.

   
  


The work did her good; at least she had to concentrate so much that there was simply no place for grief. Jenna was taking care of a tech who have had suffered a splinter in his arm from her jet’s explosion. Carefully she changed the provisional dressing and inspected the wound.

    “It seems to be healing quite well despite the circumstances. In a few cycles there should only be a small scar left.” She reassured the Vortian and gently applied a healing salve on the wound. She was so preoccupied in her work that she didn’t notice how he was eyeing her.

    “Has the… Irken any idea as of why his SIR unit wouldn’t obey?” the tech suddenly asked and she flinched so hard that her finger slipped and poked directly into the wound, but the Vortian didn’t bat an eye. Quickly she averted her gaze and tried to catch her breath.

    “I… n- _no_ , I don’t think so. I guess the crash on the moon damaged him…” she equivocated and turned around to clear her tools. The Vort grunted something and left the Bay. Jenna put her stuff on one of the counters in the back and clutched its edge. There were beads of sweat on her forehead.

Nemon’s hand on her back scared the crap out of her.

    “Are you alright?” he asked quietly and she nodded brusquely after catching herself.

    “ _Sure_. Just can’t seem to stand the sight of blood anymore.” She replied strained and indeed her stomach appeared to jump at the thought of it.

    “You didn’t talk to Set since I brought you back, did you?” He sounded disappointed and worried. Jenna angrily flicked a strand of hair out of her face and smeared salve all over it in the process. With an annoyed sound she wiped the wet stuff away.

    “I was too  _tired_.” she just stated and it wasn’t even a real lie. However she could practically hear Nemon  _frown_  behind her back.

    “Jenna… are you blaming Set for Feorn’s death?” he asked, now clearly concerned and that made her even angrier.

    “ _Well_ … it was  _his_  fucking robot! And if he hadn’t threatened Feorn like that, he would… he wouldn’t have…” she faltered and wrapped her arms around her chest defiantly. Somewhere in the depths of her mind a small, rational voice tried to make her believe that Set indeed wasn’t to blame but it was instantly drowned by her grief and anger.

Nemon gave a faint sigh.

    “You don’t even have a real argument for it… Jenna you have to stop doing this!”

She wheeled around and stared at him hurt, her arms were almost painfully pressing against her chest to try and stop her stomach from doing a backflip. She knew what he meant, she knew in a part of her conscience that bitterness and sorrow were now claiming relentlessly, overshadowing any rational thought.

    “Stop  _what_?! What exactly is it that I’m  _doing_?! Can’t I just be left alone to be sad on my own?” she snapped back and regretted it the second she saw the hurt look in his four eyes. She cast her eyes to the floor and slouched. “I… Nemon I’m sorry.”

But the Ilenian was already turning away from her. “Nemon wait… I didn’t mean to snap at you like that.” She begged hastily and reached for his arm. When he actually stopped she was so surprised that she bumped into him. He looked down on her with a glare that had something like the tired anger of a father in it.

    “Jenna… I know that you’re angry and sad. We all are. But we can’t afford to give ourselves up to our grief, we just can’t  _allow_  it! There’s still a war raging out there, spread across countless of systems and it’s our responsibility to fight for peace if we don’t want our children to grow up in slavery! Only this thought keeps me from dropping everything and just mourn Elis until this pain is finally bearable for me!” he was near to screaming and Jenna took a few steps back.

She didn’t need to ask who Elis was, after all Nemon had told her about the half blinded boy he had picked up on the streets on her first night aboard the  _Rebellion_.

He noticed her scared look and leaned against the counter exhausted, his face buried in his hands. “I’m not saying I had it worse than you - that would be selfish and unfair on you since you suffered so much more… But Elis… he was like a  _son_  to me; I can’t father any children of my own and I didn’t have the time to raise one with the job I had… Elis, well, I just needed to teach him, the love for him came on its own over the years.” He laughed quietly, a tired and worn out sound. “He was so damn skilled with the scalpels. He was quite gifted in general… he would’ve made a fine surgeon.”

Jenna ran her fingers through her hair, she was feeling worse than before.

    “I am so sorry Nemon… I’m trying to be strong, but… everything here reminds me of Feorn! I just can’t believe he’s really gone. It all went too quickly…” She rubbed her face to hide the redness around her eyes. Nemon’s hand on her shoulder felt familiar… more familiar than a touch from Set or even Feorn. It felt more like her father’s hand. Her father telling her everything was going to be alright.

The pain was unbearable.

    “I know, Set is probably the last person you want to see now, but I also know how often you told me that you wanted to change him. But to do just that he needs  _you_. Go back to him, tell him how you feel and why.” Nemon still looked concerned, the worried look of a doctor fearing for the life of a patient. “I’m afraid there might be something wrong with him, but should it merely be a symptom of a change in his mind he needs you to cope with it. I figure for someone who has never experienced the whole pallet of emotions it must be confusing, terrifying even, when they suddenly start feeling them and don’t know what they are. It is incumbent upon you to take care of him, after all you’re the one who brought him here and put him into this situation in the first place.”

She nodded reluctant. What Nemon said was the truth; and even if her feelings were striving against it the rational part of her brain couldn’t ignore that fact.

Again she slouched a bit.

    “Nemon… I- I think it might be better if I take some time to sort out my feelings before getting back to treating patients.” She muttered quietly. The Chief Medical Officer gave her an indulgent smile.

    “I think that is very reasonable of you.”

   
  


On her way back to her quarter she felt relieved, as if a huge weight had been lifted off her shoulders.

Set was still lying on the bed, his back turned on the door when she entered and also didn’t stir when she stepped into the dark room. Troubled she approached the Irken.

    “Set?” she asked quietly and exhaled eased when she saw the twitching of his antennae. Carefully she sank down on the mattress and cleared her throat self-consciously. “Hey, uhm… can we talk? Just like we did that evening back on the  _Massive_  before you left for your mission?”

Just now she realized how desperately she was hoping that Set would really listen to her and understand. But he didn’t make any move to turn around. Jenna furrowed her brows.

“Listen, I know I haven’t been exactly nice to you since… since the  _accident_ , but I was just too churned up and… I somehow blamed you for all of this in a way, which was wrong of me to do, and I’m sorry for making you feel bad, so let’s try to work this out, okay?”

Again Set didn’t move a muscle.

Anger flared up inside her, now she was already trying to  _apologize_  to him and he was just digging his heels in again! “Are you even  _listening_!?” she shouted and punched his shoulder.

All of a sudden Set spun around and launched himself on her, pressing her onto the bed; before she could react his hands wrapped around her throat, squeezing it shut mercilessly with brutal force. Jenna’s shocked scream turned into a choked rattle as the Irken tightened his grip. His eyes were dark from rage and foaming saliva was dripping from the corners of his mouth. That was no breath control anymore, he was trying to kill her!

“Set!” she wheezed faintly and frantically clawed at his arms to shake him off. For a moment he squeezed even harder, then his eyes widened and he let go off her. Jenna coughed and desperately sucked the air into her lungs, a pang jolting through her chest from straining her respirational muscles like that. She turned over on her belly and tried to crawl away from him, her throat throbbing painfully as the blood shot back into her veins in the forceful pulses of her racing heart.

Slowly Set rose from the bed and recoiled, his hands still bent into claws but his gaze was confused and insecure.

    “I…” he began, but hushed immediately when she got up and furiously hissed at him:

     “What the hell Set, I just wanted to talk to you, you son of a bitch! Why am I even trying to change a goddamn psychopath?! It’s no use anyway!” Only then it caught her eye that he had nothing on. Her frown got deeper. “And why in the world are you  _naked_? If you honestly believe I’m in the  _mood_  for this you’re even sicker than I thought!” Her anger was like a wild storm, sweeping away everything Nemon had said to her just now.

Set scratched his back and averted his gaze.

    “It itches…” he uttered so quietly she thought she had misheard.

    “It  _itches_?” she asked confused and he snarled at her.

    “That’s what I said, isn’t it?!”

Jenna jumped off the bed and stormed towards the door.

    “You know what, bite me! I’m going to the hangar to get my jet fixed!” At the door she stopped and looked over her shoulder. “You’re free to join me whenever you’ve calmed the fuck down. Other than you I’m actually willing to treat you  _civilized_.” She added snidely and would’ve loved to slam the door shut behind her but it gently slid back on its own.

In the hallway she clenched her fists so hard that the pain in the balls of her hands numbed most of her rage, still the aliens coming her way body-swerved her generously as she stormed towards the hangar.

Her jet still hadn’t been re-painted but at least someone had fixed the gaping hole in the side. Melancholic Jenna brushed over the scraped off lacquer down to the spot where Feorn had painted the name  _Lightwing_  on it. ‘Least she knew now what it was supposed to mean and it comforted her a little bit, even though the memory was about to bring tears to her eyes again. Grimly she fought the sadness back and went to look for one of the techs.

She didn’t just find any tech but the very one who had given her the suit for her fighter back then. When she recognized him she managed to give a small smile and received such a tight hug that she lost her breath for the second time this cycle. Nevertheless she returned the embrace and when the tech parted from her she thought seeing something close to actual tears in his eyes.

    “I’m so sorry, human. Feorn and you were close, right?”

She flinched a bit when she thought of  _how_  close they had actually been. She just nodded and pointed in the direction of her fighter.

    “My jet could use a new paintjob.” When she saw the way the tech frowned she was quick to raise her hands in defense. “Only the scratches, I want everything else to stay the way it was!” she added, his face eased up and he nodded understanding.

    “Alright, I see what I can do.”

Relieved Jenna left him and scuffed back to her jet. Lost in thoughts she glanced down on her wrist. For the first time she saw what she had done in her craze: the cuts were ugly and jagged, and would definitely leave bulging scars. The Irken slave brand had been completely torn by the wounds and the lasting scars would most likely distort it to her dying day what educed a grim smile from her. In that case she would gladly carry the other scars as well.

She decided to stay the rest of the cycle inside her fighter. The dark of the cockpit was calming and quiet, like her blue room back on Set’s ship. She dwelled on her thoughts in silence; albeit only the dark ones and lost herself in the white noise of her own head.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Out of suffering have emerged the strongest souls. The most massive characters are seared with scars." - Khalil Gibran
> 
> I've been watching Criminal Minds the past weeks and there are just so many good literature quotes!  
> I chose this one as a form of foreshadowing, of what might become of Jenna.  
> I can't believe how much I've wrote already and how much there still is to come... 
> 
> (Nemon for Space-Dad yay)


	50. Guilt- Pt. 5

###  - 20 – Guilt

#### Part 5

_  
The feeling of suffocation woke him, a desperate gasp sucked the air back into his lungs and he jerked up. It was dark around him but his mind was immediately blinded by the glaring warning messages flooding his brain._

_[WARNING – WARNING – OXYGEN LEVEL CRITICAL] [LOST CONTACT TO MAIN HOST – RECALCULATING]_

_He shook his head as if that could turn the alarms off and they only got louder as a result and a wave of sickness washed over him, making his insides churn._

_[WARNING – SYSTEM OVERHEATING – SYSTEM- ]_

_“Run... scan…” he managed to utter but had to steady himself on the bed right away, the dizziness overwhelming him, a shrill skirl in his head. He had to get up; something wasn’t right… he had to_ do _something!_

_[SCAN FINISHED] [HOSTILE ENVIRONMENT DETECTED – INITIATING DEFENSIVE MODE]_

_Now he remembered… he was with the enemy… he was a prisoner! He got up, knees shaking, and stumbled over to the door._

_[WARNING – DEFENSIVE MODE; FAILURE – WEAPON SYSTEM; FAILURE] [WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEND A REPORT?]_

_“No! Abort… I can’t…” he yelled appalled and almost collapsed against the door. The alarms went silent for a moment and he tried to catch his breath, his blood was racing through his veins yet his hands were as cold as ice. Somehow he had enough strength left to pry open the door and stagger outside into the bright hallway. His eyes squinted from the glaring light and he recoiled, lifting his hands to block it off._

_[WARNING]_

_He looked around… where was he? The name suddenly appeared before him. The_ Rebellion _. He had to get to the MedBay! That Ilenian… Nem-… something – he could surely help him get this fixed…_

_[WARNING]_

_[WARNING]_

_The guard in front of the door shouted something. He turned his head around and recognized a Vortian. There was a rage flaring up inside him that wanted to take control over his body, a silent command screaming in his mind…_

_[ENEMY LOCATED - DESTROY]_

_[ENEMY LOCATED - DESTROY]_

_But he couldn’t allow it to take over, he had promised her not to! He had promised… Jen... Jenna?  
   "Jenna..." he croaked and the guard stopped for a second before raising his gun again, screaming something at him. The sound was unbearably loud and he flinched again, a snarl curling his lips. They were dried out and chapped. He wanted to lick them but there was no saliva left in his mouth, only a bitter, slimy fluid.  
  
[WARNING - SPIDERLEGS; OFFLINE - FAILED TO EJECT] [ARMOR SYSTEM; OFFLINE - FAILED TO EJECT]  
[WARNING - HOST VULNERABLE]  
[INITIATING SELF DEFENSE RESPOND]  
  
He shook his head again. "No..." he grunted through gritted teeth. The guard took a step forward.  
  
[DANGER IMMINENT - OVERRIDE HOST]  
  
His fist shot up and punched the Vortian right under the chin. The force was enough to lift him off his feet before he collapsed in a heap on the ground.  
  
[DANGER AVERTED] [HOSTILE FORCES DETECTEDDDDDD] [_ _H̸̬̩ͅO̡̘͍̠̞ͅͅŞ̳TĮL̼͇͔̪̘͢E̴̮ ͉͖̟͙̟̪͇F̴͚̞͚ÒR̳̱͉̗̻͈̥C͈͖̬͖͍̙C̝͙̮̠͙͖͎͟C̦C̤̹̮̯͍̥̹͜C̻̮̞̩͟___̫_̸͙͚̳̫̩D͎̺E̮TE҉̤͉̺̲͈̰C̦̘̣̫͖C̼̻̦̮͕C̢̹C̻͚̜̥̲͙̪T͙̙̘̣̜̻̬T͙͕̗;;͖̖͇̰͟_͓̤͔̙̱̀_̥͍̣̦͎̣̬̕_͍͓͍̭͉͈_̩̙̩̬͢]̻̘̳͖̕ ͓̲̬̪[̖͖̯̹̲̻S̝C̩̖͍̘̣̞̤A̧̙̻N͚͖̤̙̮Ǹ͚̪N̫̭͔̩N҉̟͍N̤̠͕N̻̙̜̬̳͈̖͠N̶̮̬̝̲̲̘N̞͖͕͉̙͍̥͡_͎͞C̪̣̕C̝̹̱̝͓͝ͅͅC̯̝͞CN̥̱N̡̜̯̞̪͇]_   
  
_He groaned in pain, the malfunctions were causing short circuits in both his Pak and neural system. He had to get to the MedBay, he had to get to safety, he had to see Jenna... she would be there, she would take care of him... yes... she had healed him before, she would take care of him..._

_Set held onto that thought and placed one foot after the other._

_Just don’t let it take control, you have to stay focused now... don’t give in, don’t… don’t…_   
  


[̷̸̷́͝W̕͏̛́Ą͟͠҉Ŕ͢N̷̷̸̴͘I̵̸͢N̸̕͜G҉̶W̨҉̺̭̣̹͎͢À̴̡̟̦R̸̡̳͕̥̣̘̮̲͞͠N̻͇̺̳͈̣͟͢Ḭ̵̱͖̖͖N̗͘͜͟͢͞G̡͇̝͇̼͉͈̹̙͡͝͞W̷̸̧̧̹̦͖̤̯̗͟A͜͏̦͚̩͢R̢̨̩̥̦̖̘̺̖͚͉̖̖̹͢͟N̴̡͟͟͏͍͎̼͚͔̙͓͉̥̟Ì̧̢̲̦̝̠̰̬̙̙͈̰ͅṊ̵̝͈̱̀́͞Ǵ͏̴͏̖͈̬̝͉̼̯̲̬̼͍̗͡Wͯ̔͊̍̔̃̔̓̾̍̈́͊͊̚҉̛̩͕͎̗͓̖͕̺̯̣̬͓̗̹̗̥̀͟A̴̡̞̹̤̫̹̥͇̥̗̥̟ͪ̄̂͑ͮ̀ͣ̊͜͜͟R͍̳̬͇̗̤ͬ͛ͧ̉̎̆̾̊̐͗͗̂̔̎̓̅̔͋̚͜͝N̶̗̠͎̺̤̲̣̰̜̊ͩ͛ͥ͒̕I̋̓͋̃ͣ̇̃̂͐̑̈́ͭ͌̾̓̂̀͏̨̭̞̙̦́Ņ̨̡̻̙̬̜̲̘̭̭̭̼͚̫̪͙̻͈̞͓ͮ̂ͣ̎̅ͨ̽ͥ͊̾ͨ̅͌͑ͧͧ̾ͣ̒́G̵̲͎̪̥͙̩̙͎͚̯̻̖̦̤͕̥͚ͦ͗̾̓̎̈́W̷̷̢̰͓̭͍͈̳̣̼̻͔̥̘͔̙̪̳͑͊̂ͮ͛͋̂͌̂̚ͅA̴̷̢̝̤͍̝̖̪͓͍̦͙͈̞̲̳͕ͣ͑͆ͯ̊̈̌ͫ̃͊͛̈ͬͅR̢̨̪͇̺̗̟̰̩͕͍͍͛̽͆ͪ̀̌ͮͬ̾͑͐́͋̐͌̎͆̀̚͝N̸̵͕̮̖̫̩̼̹͚̰̟̻̪̙̑ͮ̈́́͂͑ͣ͆̐̇̇́͠I͒̒ͪ̂̏͐̆̊͆̋͟͡͏̴̯̝͇̣N̨̖͍͎͓̣͔̞̠͓̥͕̞͖͚̟̹̣͐̾̈́ͣ̊̏̆̍ͩG̶̋̒̅̔̓̈́̒ͫ̃ͦ̏̚̚͏͈͖̼̰͍̼̥͔͕̞̘̻̗͜W̩̭͇̦̩̣̜͓̙̃̃ͤ̇̍ͮ̓ͫ̾ͬ͗̿́̂̍ͯ̃̚͡A̰̳͚̩̖̤̦͙̪̜̗̤͇͈̦̝͓̫̯̒̆͗ͩͪ̏̌ͫ̓ͭ̅̈́͂ͯͯ̑͑ͩ̕͠͝Rͪ͛̅̅́̀͏͓̲̮͍̱̺͕̪͓͢ͅWͯ̔͊̍̔̃̔̓̾̍̈́͊͊̚҉̛̩͕͎̗͓̖͕̺̯̣̬͓̗̹̗̥͙̀͟A̴̡̞̹̤̫̹̥͇̥̗̥̟͎ͪ̄̂͑ͮ̀ͣ̊͜͜͟R͍̳̬͇̗̤ͬ͛ͧ̉̎̆̾̊̐͗͗̂̔̎̓̅̔͋̚͜͝N̶̗̠͎̺̤̲̣̰̜̊ͩ͛ͥ͒̕I̋̓͋̃ͣ̇̃̂͐̑̈́ͭ͌̾̓̂̀͏̨̭̞̙̦́Ņ̨̡̻̙̬̜̲̘̭̭̭̼͚̫̪͙̻͈̞͓ͮ̂ͣ̎̅ͨ̽ͥ͊̾ͨ̅͌͑ͧͧ̾ͣ̒́G̵̲͎̪̥͙̩̙͎͚̯̻̖̦̤͕̥͚ͦ͗̾̓̎̈́W̷̷̢̰͓̭͍͈̳̣̼̻͔̥̘͔̙̪̳͑͊̂ͮ͛͋̂͌̂̚ͅA̴̷̢̝̤͍̝̖̪͓͍̦͙͈̞̲̳͕ͣ͑͆ͯ̊̈̌ͫ̃͊͛̈ͬͅR̢̨̪͇̺̗̟̰̩͕͍͍͛̽͆ͪ̀̌ͮͬ̾͑͐́͋̐͌̎͆̀̚͝N̸̵͕̮̖̫̩̼̹͚̰̟̻̪̙̑ͮ̈́́͂͑ͣ͆̐̇̇́͠I͒̒ͪ̂̏͐̆̊͆̋͟͡͏̴̯̝͇̣N̨̖͍͎͓̣͔̞̠͓̥͕̞͖͚̟̹̣͐̾̈́ͣ̊̏̆̍ͩG̶̋̒̅̔̓̈́̒ͫ̃ͦ̏̚̚͏͈͖̼̰͍̼̥͔͕̞̘̻̗͜W̩̭͇̦̩̣̜͓̙̃̃ͤ̇̍ͮ̓ͫ̾ͬ͗̿́̂̍ͯ̃̚͡A̰̳͚̩̖̤̦͙̪̜̗̤͇͈̦̝͓̫̯̒̆͗ͩͪ̏̌ͫ̓ͭ̅̈́͂ͯͯ̑͑ͩ̕͠͝Rͪ͛̅̅́̀͏͓̲̮͍̱̺͕̪͓͢ͅN̷̨̛͔̙̮̠̟͎̫̮̤̤̼̺͍̩̩̠̒̔̒͐ͯ͞ͅI̓ͮ͊̋̓̐̿̉͏̨̡̟̣̻͓͈̜̩̮̥N̨͊̌̓ͦͪͫͮͨ̆̀͏͎̤̲̹̼̖̠͔͕͙͈̦̯̣̯̗̤͍Ḡ̨̖̥͓͚͈̠̟̩̰̱ͮͧͦ̄͆̅ͥ̃̂́́͟͞W̴̷̹̭͎̗̦̹̺̼͚̜̞͎̣̦̳̘͈̆͗͗ͥ̄̎ͤ́̑̀̿̌͌̿̍ͫ͂͒̚͟͝ͅͅA̾̒̌͐͂͏̻̼̩͉͉̝͔̹͙̹͎̭̹͎̗̹̫R̢̨̡͇̮͔̰̤̖̩̱͉̬̫͎̘͓͗͆̈́ͫ̄ͧ̐ͮ̀͒ͤͮͩ́̌ͫ͊̈͌Ṉ̢̡͍̖͔̫̳̲ͫ̈́ͭͩ̍͒̊ͭ̂͋̈͐ͩ͑ͧ̂̔̅̕͟Ȋ̢̨̛̳̙̟̹͔̯̥̥͈͕̥͖̬̌ͤͪ̈́͋ͨ͆ͤͨͮ̊ͯ̉̋̐N̟̹̠̼̭͎͒͊͗ͦ̉̋̒́͢͠G̛ͦ̄̇ͣ̊ͦ̚҉̲̯̘̻̹̝̠̙̜̳̫͞W̡̛̻̩̲̻̰̬̙̬̱̖̫̝̄̓̽̌͋͐ͨ̅̂ͧͩ͌ͪ̏̏ͣͅA̧̡ͫ̃̀̔͋̍̈̒̏ͭͥ͏͓̤̼͚̫̺̬̙̮Ř̶͙̥̭̺̇͌͋ͥ̆̀̽ͬ͑ͮ̅̐̂̐̍ͫ͛͡͠͝͡N̵̢̨͙̭̬̳͖̲͇͈ͦ̔̑ͣ̏̐͌̓͠I̧̨̙̜̰͎̟̭̱̦̤̻̙͓̺̼̣͔̤ͥ̎̏͌̒͐͆͋̽ͨ̈́̀͂̇N̡̛̋͛̐͒ͤͯ̇ͧ̌ͮ̉͋̏̓̎̈́̒̀͏̨͈̪̤͖̻̩͚̦̪G͆̏ͭ̓̑ͬ͢͏̡̣̟͕͍͠N̸̵͚̮͔̰̣̹̤̯̞͍̱ͯ̇͒͆̇̌ͧͩͭ̅̌̑ͮͤ͒̿͌̂̿G̴ͨ̽̎͜͏͜҉̼̗͓͔̥͓̣̘͕̺͚͎͔G̸̸̸̸͇̩̥͙̱̝͚͚͔̥̯̫̰̤͓̤̭͎̻ͫ͂ͬ̊ͦ̓͊ͪ͋̓͒ͩͬ̕G̵̺͙̹̤̞̮̳̠͔̙̘͔͙̥̗̫ͮ̈́̆ͬ͊ͧ͛̀̋ͥ̃̀ͯͮͤ̀͌ͮ͑̀͘Gͨ̎ͣͤ̎̃̈ͨͪ̈̔ͯ̑̑̊͂҉͘͡҉҉͚̼̩̗̰̤͖͙̪͖̪̣̙̩̺̱G̰̠͉̥͇͙̬̮̰̤͖̯̹ͧ͋̓͆ͨ̓́ͯͯ̒̓̆̀̃̀̕͜͢G̶̡̯͙͎̖̬̯̩̖̲̼̬͎̦͕̘̑̓̓̏́̈̄͌̈̔̅ͨ́̕͟G͋ͨͥͥͮ̓̾ͪͤ̍̔ͮ͋̆̋̑҉̴̢̤̪͚̭͟͞]̼͍͎͙͌́ͮ͆̊̌͆͑̌͋̒̆̐͆ͩ̀́̕͟͡N̷̨̛͔̙̮̠̟͎̫̮̤̤̼̺͍̩̩̠̒̔̒͐ͯ͞ͅI̓ͮ͊̋̓̐̿̉͏̨̡̟̣̻͓͈̜̩N̨͊̌̓ͦͪͫͮͨ̆̀͏͎̤̲̹̼̖̠͔͕͙͈̦̯̣̯̗̤͍Ḡ̨̖̥͓͚͈̠̟̩̰ͮͧͦ̄͆̅ͥ̃̂́́͟͞W̴̷̹̭͎̗̦̹̺̼͚̜̞͎̣̦̳̘͈̆͗͗ͥ̄̎ͤ́̑̀̿̌͌̿̍ͫ͂͒̚͟͝ͅͅA̾̒̌͐͂͏̻̼̩͉͉̝͔̹͙̹͎̭̹͎̗R̢̨̡͇̮͔̰̤̖͗͆̈́ͫ̄ͧ̐ͮ̀͒ͤͮͩ́̌ͫ͊̈͌Ṉ̢̡͍̖͔̫ͫ̈́ͭͩ̍͒̊ͭ̂͋̈͐ͩ͑ͧ̂̔̅̕͟Ȋ̢̨̛̳̙̟̹͔̯̥̥͈͕̥͖̌ͤͪ̈́͋ͨ͆ͤͨͮ̊ͯ̉̋̐N̟̹̠̼͒͊͗ͦ̉̋̒́͢͠G̛ͦ̄̇ͣ̊ͦ̚҉̲̯̘̻̹̝̠̙̜͞W̡̛̻̩̲̻̰̬̙̬̱̖̫̝̄̓̽̌͋͐ͨ̅̂ͧͩ͌ͪ̏̏ͣͅA̧̡ͫ̃̀̔͋̍̈̒̏ͭͥ͏͓̤̼͚̫̺̬̙̮Ř̶͙̥̭̺̇͌͋ͥ̆̀̽ͬ͑ͮ̅̐̂̐̍ͫ͛͡͠͝͡N̵̢̨͙̭̬̳͖̲͇͈ͦ̔̑ͣ̏̐͌̓͠Iͥ̎̏͌̒]̼͍͎͙͌́ͮ͆̊̌͆͑̌͋̒̆̐͆ͩ̀́̕͟͡

  
  
  
  
  


Jenna had left her Chronometer in her room and there was no clock inside the cockpit so in the end she had no idea how much time had passed when someone was suddenly banging against the canopy, jerking her from her twilight state. Annoyed she opened the cockpit and couldn’t sort the tech’s haunted look at first. Were they under attack?

    “What…” she wanted to ask but he hectically waved at her to come out.

    “There’s no time, Nemon sends me! You have to get to the MedBay  _stat_!” he interrupted her quickly and pointed towards the exit. But what he said didn’t make any sense as well, Nemon had just ordered her to take a break, he wouldn’t call her back to assist with an emergency, which was why she hesitated to get up. Then the tech seemed to remember something. “He said it’s about the Irken!”

Now she was highly alarmed. Had Set now decided to go on a killing spree through the  _Rebellion_  after all!?

Lickety-split she jumped out of her jet and landed so hard on the floor she could hear her ankles crack and cussed harshly before sprinting out of the hangar and back to the MedBay like the Tallest were on her heels. This time the other crew members had to throw themselves sideways to get out of her way in time.

Fear for Nemon and the others was chivvying her, and the anger in her stomach; why couldn’t Set just keep his bloodlust in check for once?

When she squeezed through the slowly opening door to the MedBay she stopped for a second to quickly look around but the massacre she had expected was missing. Instead she found an unconscious guard lying on one of the biers and Nemon standing in front of another stretcher with his back turned to her. Slowly she approached him.

    “Nemon? What is going on? What happened?!” she asked confused and he turned around. His hands, stuck in white gloves, were covered in crimson blood with weird specks of black. His eyes were frightening her and she leaned to the side alarmed to see who was lying on that stretcher. When she saw him, she recoiled and finally realized what was going on.

She saw Set lying lifelessly on the bier, the dark color of his eyes she had noticed before, saw the blood pouring from the seams of his Pak and everything fell into place.

“ _NO_!!”   
  
Her shrill, terrified scream made the Irken flinch. “No, no, no,  _no_!  _Nemon_! Tell me this isn’t real, please tell me that this is all just a show to snap me out of it,  _please_  Nemon!” Her voice was cracking and faltering but she kept screaming, “I’m sorry I let myself go like that, I’m sorry I treated Set like shit, oh god I’m  _sorry_!!”

Her legs gave in and she sank to the ground next to the stretcher, her hands clutching the metal frame in a helpless attempt to keep herself up. She had started to sob unrestrained now and buried her face in her hands. “I’m just dreaming, this is all just a fucking  _nightmare_!” she panted between two broken breaths. Then someone touched her head and she froze. Was she finally going to wake from this living hell? Frightened she looked up and right into Set’s face twisted with pain.

    “Please stop screaming like that… I’m not dead just yet.” He mumbled tired and his antennae were waving faintly when he managed to grin at her, but it looked so miserable that she started crying all over again.

    “Set… I… oh god, I’m so sorry!” Now she remembered all the things that seemed to be off about him and she would’ve paid attention to if she hadn’t been so wrapped up in her own damn sorrow; his strangely dark eyes, his petulance and most of all this  _itching_. She had seen it ever since he had gotten onto the ship, the constant twitching of his fingers and antennae as if he was  _itching_  to do something but after Feorn’s death she just didn’t think about it anymore and had only given in to her depression.

She turned towards Nemon as Set sank back on the stretcher with a groan.

“What’s happening to him? Is he sick?” she was hoping that he was only sick with an illness, something treatable, something...

The Ilenian gently pulled her back on her feet, he was looking even more worried than before.

    “No, it’s not an illness, Jenna. I’m… I’m afraid that his body is rejecting his Pak. This process is often observed in invaders and Irken military as a countermeasure in case they get captured to avoid being interrogated. His symptoms are advancing at an alarming rate… I don’t want to lie to you, things are looking black. We could try supporting his system with artificial Pakrit, but it is close to inept and would only give him some time. I’m sorry Jenna.” He sounded genuinely sad. She shook her head fiercely.

    “No,  _I’m_  sorry Nemon. It’s all my fault, it's… I’ve seen the symptoms but didn’t know what they meant and when Feorn died…” Jenna bent over Set who had closed his eyes and gently stroked over his sweaty forehead. “It was right there, right under my eyes and all I did was hurling my anger and feelings of guilt at him instead of caring for him…”

When she turned around again there was such a desperate look on her face that Nemon was certain she would kill herself should the Irken die. “I can’t lose him…” she whispered, “not him too. If Set dies…” she broke off and clasped a hand over her mouth, her stomach was doing backflips again.

The Ilenian sighed and took one of his assistants with him to get the Pakrit surrogate from one of the storage rooms. She gazed after him until Set took her hand and she turned around. His skin was pale green, more like a dirty yellow. His dark eyes had the color of dried rose petals.

All of this was a slap in her face. It might not have been her fault that Ria and Feorn had died but should Set die as well, then only because she had allowed her grief to riven her while he was suffering and didn’t want to admit he wasn’t feeling well. She wondered if he would’ve asked her for help if she had stayed with him instead of running off and hiding in the hangar like that earlier. If he would’ve told her that something wasn’t right.

“Set… I’m so sorry for everything…” she breathed hoarsely and swallowed, “I’m so sorry that the Tallest want to kill you, that your ship got destroyed… dammit I’m even sorry you lost SIR!” She felt his cold hand in hers and squeezed it. Set had opened his eyes to small slits and watched her. Despite the darker color she could see that he was pondering. When he finally spoke his voice was faint and weak.

    “Why are you always crying so much? Because of me, I know that much… but  _for_  me? Are you actually crying for a monster?”

At first Jenna was speechless but then she remembered that invader Spleen had been strangely sentimental before his death as well, as though his Pak’s Coding was gradually unwinding with his strength leaving him.

She smiled and tears dripped from her cheeks onto the stretcher and their clasped hands when she bent down to kiss him softly.

    “You are  _my_  monster.” She answered his question. Set blinked slowly, then he understood and a crooked grin crept up on his face.

    “Oh.” he just did and let his free hand rest on her nape while he returned the kiss. Jenna could taste the bitterness on his lips and clenched her hand into a fist.

She was reluctant to part from him but now she knew what she had to do.

    “You better not be dead when I get back!” she growled and helped Nemon with the containers full of synthetic Pakrit.

    “You can’t tell me… nothing.” Set mumbled tired and closed his eyes again.

    “Nemon, I need to go see Tork… I have to… make a deal with him.” She said under her breath and the doctor froze in terror. He almost dropped the last container as he stared at her aghast. He knew exactly what she had in mind.

    “Jenna… are you sure you-“ – “Yes, I am.” She interrupted him grimly and turned on her heel to dash out of the MedBay and straight towards the Command Bridge. Now it was a faint spark of hope driving her to run even faster, hope and fear. Tork simply  _had_ to know a way to help her!

She headed him off in front of the bridge and stopped with aching sides.

    “Tork- Commander, I-“ she panted breathless and he made a gesture that undoubtedly meant ‘easy, breathe first!’. Jenna shook her head. “Please, I have to- Set is  _dying_ , Tork! He is going to die and I need to prevent exactly that from happening!” she gasped and now he scrutinized her curious.

    “And how exactly are you going to do that?” he asked more intrigued than doubtful. Jenna straightened her back and swallowed hard.

    “I don’t care how, I don’t care what; I will do  _anything_ to prevent that he’s taken from me as well; I- I want to put myself into the Resistance’s service!” her voice was shaking and Tork examined her with his head tilted to the side.

    “You would pledge yourself to the Resistance for the sake of an Irken invader? You would swear the oath and fight for us just to save his life? What about your family, your own people?”

Jenna just shook her head again.

    “I can’t let him die, Commander… I can’t lose him as well.  _Please_ , I’ll do everything that’s necessary for you to help me, I'm begging you!” Her vehement pleading made Tork nod slowly. Finally he turned around and beckoned her to follow him onto the Bridge. Jenna thought about how much time Set would have with the additional synthetic Pakrit.

The Commander spoke to the navigators before tending to a screen and calling up the outlines of a space station built on top of an asteroid.

    “This is an Irken surveillance station. At the moment it’s blockading a planet where rebels have entrenched themselves after their ship was shot down by that same station. They can’t evacuate without getting killed and we have information that the armada has already sent a squad to eviscerate them. You said you’ll do anything necessary for us to help you. Well, it would be necessary for this station to disappear to save the life of your Irken invader… possibly.”

She flinched and narrowed her brows.

    “What is ‘ _possibly_ ’ supposed to mean!? I thought you knew a way! I only do this if I'm sure that Set is going to be saved, got it?!” she protested and got a wry look back.

    “Are you saying that you don’t trust me?” the Vortian asked slyly. Jenna chewed her lower lip and averted her gaze.

    “I just want him to live… please.” she muttered exhausted and dropped her clenched fists resigning.

Tork changed the screen to another quadrant and pointed at a tiny moon orbiting a giant planet.

    “There is someone living on this moon who might be able to help the Irken. Nemon told me what the problem is and I think the recluse who lives here can solve it. You probably already asked yourself why there are no deserted Irken on this ship or anywhere else, right?”

The question surprised her but Jenna nodded. Now that he brought it up… it really was strange.

    “Why is that?” she replied and suddenly thought of invader Spleen who had practically been dissolving before her eyes until she delivered him the coup de grâce.

    “The Paks are the problem. The moment an Irken decides to desert, this is just a theory but we’ve also seen it in captured invaders and soldiers, they start leaking this black stuff after a while. Nemon is working on a thesis about this mechanism and his research so far revealed that the Paks are apparently initiating the rejection on a silent command. We haven’t been able to catch this signal yet because every time we tried to put probes or analyzers on them the process was instantaneous. Not long after that they die and the Pak detonates itself to erase its memory. When you told me about your friend Ria I first thought she had sought out this very hermit. But if that had been the case the Tallest probably would’ve found his hideout by now and taken him out. Fortunately his signal is still online."

Jenna shook her head in confusion and raised her hands.

    “Hold on Commander. I don’t get what any of this has to do with Set! Set still has all his Codes, not like Ria, her Pak had been completely decoded by herself!”

Tork shut her frantic stammering up with a brusque hand gesture.

    “Rule number one is to  _listen_ when your Commander is trying to explain something to you, human! That hermit is said to be able to decode Irken Paks. I reckoned if he removes the Codes from Set’s Pak the rejection symptoms will stop.”

Now Jenna was baffled; she was gaping at Tork.

    “T-that isn’t… are you  _sure_? Why didn’t you tell me earlier?” she called out shocked but the Vortian just gave her a crooked grin.

    “You know Jenna, putting yourself in the Resistance’s service… it’s not really a  _fee_ for a favor but more a test if you’re really worthy of joining our cause or not. Whether you’re trusting us implicitly that we will honor your plead no matter if you return from your mission or not. When the  _Resisty_ – don’t give me that look, that was the original name of the Resistance! – when we pick someone up in the depths of space, regardless of whether they are a fugitives of war or simply a stray alien in need of help, we do it without imposing any condition other than that they earn their rations on our ships. But our true strength comes from our trust in each other and because we are always ready to give our lives for every other rebel. This is something Irken are not capable of, they don’t understand the concept of saving someone else. And this is why we are so unpredictable to them in battle and why they’re doing their utmost to eradicate us.” He sighed and placed a hand on her shoulder. “You’re going to have to trust us if you want Set to survive.” He just said and smiled.

Jenna gulped. Would it really work? What if this recluse was already dead or didn’t even hold the abilities Tork was speaking of?

Slowly she gave a nod and clenched her fist.

    “Alright… I will trust you. What do you want me to do?” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys I'm back!! I hope you like this chapter and are excited for the next one :D
> 
> Btw, I passed my exam, I'm so happy eeeek!! x3


	51. The Recluse

### -21 The Recluse –

_A few hours later – Rebellion – Command Bridge_

 

Her task was just as simple as it was impossible to do. She was to enter the space station with a stolen Irken jet, invader Spleen’s Voot-Cruiser to be exact, and lay everything to waste. Simple as that. For a means to do that she got a plasma rifle which was way too heavy to hold it up for longer than a few seconds, enough ammunition for a small army and a belt with explosives. And of course Tork gave her the armor-suit back, probably the most useful of all her weapons.

They were standing on the Bridge and Tork ceremoniously handed her a small, silvery band she wrapped around her wrist.

    “Jenna, Human from planet Earth, do you accept this gift of the Resistance, this sign of our trust and our fight against all enemies to freedom?” he recited with a deep voice that everyone listened to entranced. Jenna took a deep breath to calm her pounding heart.

    “I accept.” She answered and sank on one knee.

    “And do you accept the task imposed on you to prove your loyalty to our cause?”

Again she had trouble not to tremble.

    “I accept my task and ask in return for any help the Resistance can offer me in order to save the life of Irken invader Set.”

Nemon had taught her this particular word order when she had visited the MedBay after her meeting with Tork. Set had lost his consciousness but was stable for now as the Ilenian reassured her. At first she would always stumble over the words because of all the things running through her head. Had Feorn said similar words only with the exception that he didn’t ask for anything in return?

The mumbling of the attendants jerked her from her thoughts and she frowned.

Of course most of them were still shocked that she wanted to take on this burden for the sake of an Irken, and such an infamous one as well. Suddenly she had to think of the satisfaction it would bring her should she really return victorious. But deep inside her mind she knew that she wouldn’t make it. The odds were undoubtedly against her.

Up to now she had only fought one opponent at a time and certainly not battle-tested soldiers, and much less an entire space station of them. She had never been in a real fire fight yet, and she had been horrible at the shooting range! To be perfectly frank she wouldn’t stand a chance at all. Not even her suit would change anything about that fact, it hadn’t even protected her against the two Vorn back then.

But what made her rise despite all that and take the rifle Tork handed her was the promise she had screwed out of him before the ceremony: should she die without completely annihilating the station the rebels would make it their top priority to save the majority of Earth’s population before the Irken could launch their invasion. At least her death wouldn’t have been all for nothing. While Tork hadn’t been willing to give in to her pleading that he’d still bring Set to the recluse in case of her failing he had agreed to save another species from its destruction.

Her head was dinning when she entered the hangar with the rifle strapped on her back, making her steps heavy albeit the suit. All around pilots and techs turned their heads casting her glances; a lot of them were concerned, others surprised, almost reverent, but most of them averted their gaze commiserative when she passed them; they all knew that the human was walking towards her death. The hijacked Voot-Cruiser stood in front of the launch pad and a few techs quickly checked the systems once more. At least they were doing their best to get her there safely.

Jenna swallowed hard and clutched the belt with explosives she had thrown over her shoulder. If the Irkens noticed her before she was able to land the jet they would open fire on her without batting an eye and then everything would have really been for nothing. Her healed knee was aching dully as if a storm was approaching.

Someone touched her shoulder out of the blue, she screamed startled and almost dropped the explosives. Jenna wheeled around and froze when her view got blocked by a stomach and a broad chest, draped lash-up in a white coat and a pair of patient’s pants which were way too short for the long, green legs. With her mouth gaping she looked up, had to lay her head way back to look into the face distorted with pain.

    “Set?” she asked shakily, firmly convinced of seeing a ghost before her eyes. But the ghost bent down and placed a quick kiss on her forehead.

    “I’m sorry, I tried to stop him but I admit it’s a bit difficult trying to detain someone his size.”

Nemon’s voice seemed to come from far away, Jenna lifted her hands timidly and placed them as carefully on Set’s cheeks as she could, afraid to break the illusion.

    “I know… once he’s set his mind on doing something…” she muttered absent-minded and scrutinized her counterpart closely before shaking her head as she realized that he was really there, standing in front of her. “What are you doing here? You’re dying! You should be in the MedBay!” she got louder, the worry inside her flaring up brightly like alarm signs. Set looked at her unsmiling and pointed at the Voot-Cruiser.

    “Nemon told me what you intend to do, well, actually he told Car and I just happened to be eavesdropping.” He stopped and took a rattling breath. She steadied the swaying Irken and looked up to him with fear in her eyes.

    “Set, take it slowly!” she urged him but he had already caught himself again and looked down on her with a stern expression.

    “You have no chance, Jenna. Not the slightest, not against  _this_ crew. If I had just a fraction of my strength back I would personally keep you from doing this and lock you up in your room! Since I don’t, I can only help you out.” He said confident now and didn’t seem to notice her confused and distraught look.

    “Set… what are you talking about? You’re staying on this ship; you can’t help me, you can’t even stand upright!” she protested but he reached behind his back and got something. Judging from the screeching metal sound he had just opened his Pak by force, it made her insides churn. A glass tube was glinting in his hand when he brought it back, as long as Jenna’s hand. A deep pink liquid was lazily sloshing inside it. When she recognized what he was holding in his palm she shook her head vehemently and grasped his hand to push it away.

“No… no, Set, you need this more than I do! That’s the last bit of real Pakrit you have in your Pak! If there’s only the synthetic substitute left you will…” her upset lecture was interrupted by an equally incensed kiss that had some of the techs groan from aversion. Jenna didn’t hear them. The only thing she heard was her heart beating and the blood rushing through her ears. Set gently bit her lip when he parted from her and forced the glass tube into her hands at the same time.

    “I need  _you_. More than this stuff inside of me… I can regenerate it over time... but you I cannot replace. So use it to come back to me, understood?”

The words sounded so surreal out of his mouth –  _his_ mouth of all – that she blinked in confusion. But before she could grasp it he had already wrapped his hands around her waist to lift her up and into the Voot-Cruiser’s cockpit. The engines fired up and Set touched the glass tube in her tensed up hands.

“You know what to do with it… I just wish I could be there to see it with my own eyes.” Set whispered and actually managed to grin at her before his eyes narrowed again, “Now go, before I change my mind.” He snarled reluctant and stepped back from the jet. Still completely stunned she stared at him. Only when the canopy of the Cruiser had closed itself she finally understood what that had been in his voice: Worry. Set was genuinely worried for her. And he was afraid.

With a lump in her throat she flew the jet towards the launch pad and away into the silent darkness of space.

    “Good luck, kid… I hope you still know how to shoot.” She heard Tork over the fleet Comm and just nodded. The programmed autopilot set course and not ten minutes later she spotted the first lights of the station floating on the biggest asteroid in a small belt. Her hands started to tremble as she broke open the glass tube's top and set it to her lips. Jenna immediately cut her tongue on the jagged edges but as soon as the first drop of Pakrit touched it she didn’t feel the pain anymore.

The effect was almost instant, not like on the  _Massive_ where she had been unconscious for hours before the Pakrit had started to work. Her throbbing brain suddenly became light and seemed to expand further and further, breaking through her skull and out of the cockpit till it embraced the entire universe. She could literally feel how more and more areas of her brain got connected with an almost audible scratching sound, tighter and tighter connected until all the firing neurons generated a soft humming in her head. The Pakrit streamed down her guts boiling hot and Jenna could feel it getting digested, absorbed through the cells and entering her bloodstream, spreading through her entire body with lightning fast speed.   
  
She could see in the glass of the canopy that her eyes were slowly suffused with a crimson shine and it grew uncomfortable to look into them any longer, as though she was standing in a hallway with two mirrored walls and everything was reflected endlessly and endlessly, only that those mirrors were her own mind…

Set’s Pakrit was of a much higher quality than Ria’s had been, so pure that the small amount alone was reacting a lot more volatile than that of her entire Pak. Jenna smiled enraptured and let the new sensations have their effect on her, while her heart slowed its beat more and more. It didn’t have to pound that quickly anymore, her lungs were functioning at ten times their normal capability and her blood was fully sated with oxygen with every calm breath.

She noticed that the Voot-Cruiser hadn’t been maintained properly for quite some time, the left engine core was pulsing irregularly. The station was another 500.000 miles away from her position, it would take her three minutes and five seconds to get to it, the amount of explosives probably wasn’t enough for total destruction so she would have to come up with something else right off the bat. She avoided turning her head all that much for every new degree imparted completely new information, like the distance to the nearest stars or signs of radiation or the intensity of the light around her. She really had to focus on other things now.

Jenna took the time to re-adjust her suit. She would have to be quick, quicker than the Irkens with their spider legs and stronger, so she doubled the power influx to her arms and legs and renounced any additional protection for the time being.

The speakers buzzed and she heard a voice talking insistently to her in authoritative Irken. Curious Jenna tilted her head and listened. A shame she had destroyed her headset…

But when the voice repeated the same sentence, distinctly angrier now, she recognized some of the words and speech pattern from her subconsciousness. The translator had indeed translated everything into her language but she had still heard and spoken the language herself, so her speech organs’ muscle memories - her vocal folds, her tongue – recalled how to produce the words and thus their meaning.

    “Identify yourself already or we will open fire!” the soldier bellowed and Jenna took a quick look around inside the jet. There were no cameras that would’ve been able to transmit the interior of the cockpit.

    “Invader Spleen. I encountered rebels on my hunt and could use some repairs. Requesting immediate authorization to land.” She replied calmly in Irken and already booted the Voot-Cruiser’s fusion canons, just to be on the safe side. There was a deep silence on the other end of the line. Then the soldier was back, she could hear the suspicion in his voice, nothing she hadn’t already expected.

    “Invader Spleen’s Pak sent its termination multiple cycles ago…” But he seemed to be uncertain. Perfect.

Jenna gave an angry snort, the same she heard from Set so often. She had to hurry!

    “Yeah, of course it did… do I sound  _dead_  to you, soldier, huh?! The rebels hacked my Pak and sent the signal so the armada wouldn’t come looking for me!” she lowered her voice into a haunting hiss that made her throat burn. “They are far more dangerous than we thought! I need repairs ASAP so I can report back to the Tallest!” Contented with her performance she leaned back and lowered the landing gear; they would fall for it.

    “Oh!” the soldier squeaked and suddenly green marker lights lit up beneath her. “Welcome aboard, invader Spleen, enjoy your stay!” he was quick to add and Jenna grinned and steered the Cruiser towards the landing pad. Without any trouble she passed the station’s force field and gently landed the Cruiser. Now to the hard part… At first she would have to cripple their communication’s system to disarray their units and to prevent the station from requesting backup. But how to find out where…

Her brain changed a few neural cells inside her inner ear and made them proliferate until there were enough new cells for her to pick up and discern a wider range of frequencies. The reorganization stung, but it wasn’t that bad.

Her new, better senses traced the transmitter’s signal in no time, a high pitched sound that came from a small tower at the other end of the station. Jenna took a deep breath, turned the Cruiser around and fired.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for that rather short chapter, but the next one will be a lot longer to make up for that :D it's really hard finding good points where to seperate the whole chapter x'D


	52. The Recluse - Pt. 2

### -21 The Recluse –

#### Part 2

_Space Station_

  
When the radio tower exploded the Irken techs on the landing pad spun around and pointed at the Voot-Cruiser. She counted ten of them and slew the jet to zero in on them. In less than ten seconds the landing deck was cleared out and she grounded the Voot-Cruiser behind a few heavy container units – in any case she would need a getaway car.

But she had little time to get oriented since the main gate of the station opened and spat out a small army of Irken foot-soldiers, all around the same height as she was.  _Cannon fodder_ , Jenna thought and yanked the rifle from her back. The first row of them fell without having fired a single shot themselves but the others were quick to realize that they were fighting something unnaturally strong and immediately got to cover.

Jenna felt the cannon’s energy above the gate like a warning heatwave before seeing the projectile itself coming for her and jumped out of the way. The plasmasphere missed her by a good meter but the force of the following explosion threw her to the ground even so. Under normal conditions she would have panicked by now but her unleashed mind analyzed the situation much quicker than it could even faze her.

Her new position behind a container unit was a lot more shielded and she shot two more incautious soldiers before the cannon had time to sway around to aim and fire at her once more. She repeated this little game until the few remaining Irkens bellowed something and a hidden gate opened a few meters over the ground. Jenna had already sensed this special force field when the Voot-Cruiser touched down and changed the settings of her suit without even looking. Her legs felt as light as thistledown and she bobbed and weaved excited on the spot when her new opponent jumped out of his hangar, landing on the deck with a thundering sound.

It was some sort of battle mech, armed to its teeth and manned, she could feel the pilot’s presence behind the mech’s thick canopy glass. The soldiers rejoiced and entrenched behind the bot while he tossed a grenade at the human in a wide arc. What an excellent forward pass! Jenna allowed herself a second to grin before she raised her rifle and fired a single shot, already sprinting off in the same motion. The grenade detonated above the ground and raised enough dust and smoke to block the sight of her enemies. When it settled again she was gone.

    “What the…” one of the soldiers called out and Jenna came flying at the group from the side. Startled shouts and wild, unaimed shots made her ears ring but she had her eyes fixed on her target: She landed on the battle mech's back and was gone again at the split of a second, with an elegant turn she touched down on the station’s roof and ran off.

    “After her!” was all the mech pilot could shout before the explosive charge she had planted on his back detonated, turning the remaining squad into ashes. Jenna didn’t pay any attention to the explosion behind her; she had a much more interesting target in her sight! An extremely charismatic presence was located on the upper floor of the space station. Obviously the Commander. If she could manage to take him hostage the rest of the troops would most likely surrender. If not she was at least inside and could put the rest of the charges in place.

Everything was a single rush, a rapture almost! Like the sudden flood of adrenaline you get when dodging a wrong-way driver at full speed and realize you only survived by a whisker. Only a hundred times stronger than that. She felt invincible, she  _was_  invincible! And she would save Set!

A maintenance hatch caught her attention and she ran up to it. She tore the hatch from its bracing and a warm stream of air hit her, carrying several sensations with it. A few soldiers were on their way to this hatch, she made out the smell of their sweat and the thumping of boots on metal. She nodded and waited a moment before loosening another explosive charge form her belt, weighing it in her hand.

The second she heard voices she primed the package and tossed it down the dark shaft. Quickly she jumped to her feet, picking up a surprised shout and pushed herself off the hull. Thanks to the lower gravity the blast wave carried her closer to the watch tower but when she landed she froze.

The presence was gone. Not further away or weaker, but just gone! Now that did faze her a bit. Jenna stopped and turned into every direction alertly. Her senses were wound up to a high pitch.

Suddenly the presence popped up again, though so close to her and so powerful that it blinded her for a flash. Jenna screamed startled and raised her arms, something smashed against them with such brute force that the impact carried her off her feet and send her flying a few meters before she caught herself and was able to spin around and land on her feet.

When she looked up, her eyes wide open in stun, she was faced with another battle mech. Whereas this one was more a battle  _suit_ than a real robot, at least she could see the Irken inside and he wasn’t protected by a thick sheet of glass.

Or rather,  _she_.   
  
Cold, dark red eyes stared down at Jenna imperiously and long, curled antennae whipped through the air.

    “I am General Lenka, Commander of this station and your personal butcher if you don’t surrender and drop your weapons at once!” the Irken boomed and let the suit’s giant fists punch against each other menacingly. Fascinated Jenna stretched to get a better look at her, up to know she had only known Ria as an example for female Irkens. Seeing someone like Lenka was undeniably interesting, despite the quite dangerous situation.

    “Well, that wouldn’t make you the first Butcher I annihilated.” She retorted and was scared by her own voice which suddenly seemed to have multiple echoes and sounded much louder and mellow. It even appeared to give Lenka the creeps, since her almost crushing aura flickered slightly. But she didn’t let it show on the outside.

    “Then die.” She snarled and jumped at her. Jenna calculated her trajectory and dodged but somehow she had made a mistake because Lenka managed to grab her leg and fling her around. Instinctively she curled up and mitigated her impact on the metal this way. Confused Jenna rolled to her feet and raised her rifle. The General aimed a rifle ten times the size at the human.

Again Jenna had to dodge to the side at the last second and again she misestimated; the projectile brushed her arm and her torn armor formed bubbles on that spot. Now a lot more alarmed Jenna stood up and stared at the Irken. How was she doing that? How could she foresee her movements like that? Unless…

    “You participated in one of Ria’s Pak-experiments, right? You’re Pak was changed by her!” she called out in a sudden realization and dodged another shot by a narrow margin.

    “Don’t you dare say that traitor’s name ever again!” Lenka jarred, what was practically a confirmation for her. That also explained why Jenna couldn’t read her thoughts, she was counteracting her attempts with her own abilities!

Jenna ran a narrow arc around the battle suit to force the General to move. Lightning fast she changed her own suit’s settings to channel all power on her legs. Lenka roared infuriated as the human got faster and faster.

    “I assume you have a special formula of Pakrit in you. That’s why you can intuit my movements!” she shouted, her mind still working out a plan to beat her, weighing her powers against Lenka’s obvious advantages.

She sidestepped again and heard the Irken bawl wrathfully.

    “Stay still you worm!” She tried to follow the human’s quick motions but apparently the heavy suit wasn’t able to move as quickly as she wanted it to. Her shots were missing Jenna further and further now. But her own suit was gradually reaching its limit as well, she felt it heating up and launched into another strong sprint that had the servo-joints crunch in protest.

Then suddenly she had eyes on the armored back of the General and jerked up her rifle. In the blink of an eye she fired three shots before she was forced to throw herself around again to evade Lenka’s projectiles. She laughed triumphing and emerged from the small cloud of smoke.

“Ha! It’s useless tiny rodent, my armor is too strong for your pathetic toy gun! I hardly even felt that!”

Now that gave Jenna an idea. But she wouldn’t be able to perform that stunt from just now again, her suit was too overloaded for another mad rush.

While she tried on to dodge Lenka’s shots she noticed that her opponent grew more and more haughty, her shots less well aimed; the General knew her suit would give out any time now. That was the advantage she needed; she wouldn’t expect a direct attack: In the middle of her run she veered round and ran straight for Lenka. Before she could react Jenna jumped at her and swung her clenched fist down, right at the unarmored face.

The Irken growled infuriated and threw herself forward, diving away under the punch and grabbing Jenna around her middle, squeezing the air out of her lungs. Her fist slumped on the armored shoulder of the suit with no effect. Lenka’s momentum had them both go down and the battle suit, weighing several tons, buried Jenna beneath it, breaking the chest piece of her suit. Without any power to its supporting force field the thin armor was simply shattered by the weight of Lenka’s battle suit. She couldn’t stifle a pained scream and tried frantically to writhe out of the General’s grasp but the Irken squeezed mercilessly until Jenna could hear her own ribs breaking.

Her agonized scream was drowned out by the detonation of the explosive charge she had placed on Lenka’s shoulder in her seemingly bold attack.

The sheer force of the explosion dented the station’s hull into a flat crater and Jenna lost her consciousness for a moment as the decupled weight of the battle suit crushed her body. When she opened her eyes again both her body and mind were in a tizzy. Her brain was already recovering and she took deep breaths, fully aware to the extent of her injuries but strangely the pain stayed out. She felt around, noticing a crack in the metal hull and wedged her fingers into it to pull herself from beneath the lifeless battle suit inch by inch.

Hot blood was running down her face and even now she only felt a dull pressure on her chest as though the Pakrit was sedating her and yet keeping her wide awake. Distracted she touched her face, small clumps of a warm and slippery mass that didn’t belong to her fell to the ground into a half evaporated puddle of Irken blood.

The explosion had cracked the battle suit like a walnut, parts of the crimson armor had been blasted off or turned into shrapnel. The whole left arm of the suit was gone and she could see the raw carcass that used to be the General, sticking out of the battle armor like the insides of a boiled bug. She jerked her eyes from Lenka’s scorched corpse and fixed them on the command center, her next target.

Her fingers felt over the belt with explosives around her shoulder. Only three of them were left and she stopped in her steps: the command center would be of no help to her, she would have to find the station’s energy supply. A source of energy able to provide a station this big probably held enough blasting power to destroy it, given she could actually get it to detonate. But one thing Jenna had learned from today’s events was that explosives were her friend.

As quickly as her battered body could carry her – unfortunately her left knee was messing about again – she hurried back to the maintenance hatch and dropped down the dark, smoke-filled shaft without hesitating. Since the power was still completely allocated to her legs she landed relatively gently and closed her eyes. She knew that finding the source of energy quickly was vital. But she had no idea where to look for it and random guesses based on assumptions would take too much time. Time Set didn’t have. So how would one find the source of electric power without blindly following cables…

An image came to her mind, a shark, calmly floating through the deepest of seas, where light was absent and darkness abundant. How would it find its prey? Not with smell alone. They had an organ system called the  _ampullae of lorenzini_ , a network of jelly-filled pores and canaliculi that enabled the shark to pick up changes in the electric field around him and sense the electric signals of its prey’s heartbeat.

It was quite easy to recreate this system. All she needed were a few pores in her face, connected to her facial nerve. Pakrit streamed into these pores, substituting for the conductive jelly. The reconstruction took her a few minutes and it stung, as if her face was being pierced with tiny needles but once it was finished she noticed flashes all around her, slowly turning into bright seams of light behind her closed eyes.

This way she drew a mental map of the whole station’s electronic schematics and followed the seams to a glaringly bright node of energy deep inside the asteroid that couldn’t be anything else than the power plant she was looking for.

Like a sleep-walker she started out, only that she ran and let her inner ear guide her. She never would’ve thought that this was what the echo-location of bats looked like. Her loud steps on the metal floor created explosions of sound that sharply bounced off the metal walls of the hallway.

With the help of the circuit map she had memorized she came closer and closer to her target, so close that her heart did a triumphant leap!

She would make it, she would make it, she would-

A silent fist hit her right in the temple and her world somersaulted. The impact against the wall made her ears ring and she had to snap her eyes open to escape the loud explosions of visible sound. Completely unexpected she coughed up a stream of blood, followed by her stomach contents.

Above her she could hear faint laughter as she sank to the ground leaning against the wall, confused and alarmed, her hand still futilely feeling for something to hold on to on the smooth metal. She had to get up! If she remained on the ground any longer she was as good as dead!

Lenka’s voice got clearer, but kept a strange slur and bubbling sound to it as if half her jaw was missing.

    “Did you really think I’d let a  _rat_ like you beat me this easily?!” Jenna was brutally jerked on her feet and realized that she was right: General Lenka had lost any gravitas that made her aura so intimidating before. The left side of her lower jaw was nothing more than a pasty mass of bone fragments, blood and burnt skin; the eye on the same side looked boiled and didn’t even bleed anymore.

She shook her head stunned. That was impossible, that explosion would have killed anyone! She barely thought that she didn’t want to know what the back of her head was looking like when Lenka let her fist slam into Jenna’s face. The pure sound of her nose breaking made her scream in terror and she kicked at her reflexively.

Her boot, reinforced with her suit’s power, smashed the Irken’s kneecap and they fell down in a tangle of arms and legs, but especially teeth, for Lenka abandoned every rest of self-esteem and simply sank her teeth into Jenna’s arm when she tried to push her off. They hissed and wrestled until the human suddenly managed to get a hold of one of the burnt antennae and immediately pulled on it like mad. Lenka’s piercing scream almost dazed her but she didn’t let go until the sensitive organ was torn from its root with a disgustingly wet sound, pulling out a pale nerve with it as thick as Jenna’s pinky finger. She jerked again and the nerve snapped, turning Lenka’s screams into an ear-splitting howl.

With her sharp fingers she started to scratch every bit of unprotected skin she could reach and Jenna had to let go off her to avoid getting her freshly healed eye scratched out.

Then she finally remembered the rifle she was still clutching and just held the trigger down. What was left of Lenka’s head disappeared in a final cloud of blood and with it the dreadful bellowing subsided.

The sudden silence caused a bad tinnitus and Jenna quickly shook her head to snap out of it. A siren started to blare and hectic steps sounded from above her. The station’s main computer boomed an evacuation order and Jenna slogged along the hallway. The Pakrit gradually stopped working, probably because she had thrown up most of it; she could barely see the source of energy anymore, but now she could hear it at least, a loud thumping like a giant washing machine.

Nobody tried to stop her – after their General’s death the remaining soldiers seemed to be firmly believing that they were facing an invincible force and preferred abandoning the station in a hurry. To make matters even worse the pain rushed back into her shattered body. Gloomily Jenna wished the glass tube had been a bit bigger.  

 

The power plant looked different than anything she had ever seen before when she finally broke the door open. Would she have been in full command of her strength she could have just opened it with her thoughts like the prison bars back then but since the Pakrit was already ceasing to work she was forced to open the control panel next to the door and reconnect the wiring, whereat she stopped a few times and had to think about what she was actually doing here before she was able to get her bearings back.

She assumed that the giant structure in front of her had to be some sort of fusion reactor… or something entirely different. She had to really hurry right now! Jenna placed the rest of her explosives and connected a timer Tork had given her as well. She would have less than ten minutes to escape and although she doubted this thing would be enough to destroy the space station her Pakrit-self told her not to worry.

For a second she just stood there, the timer in her hands, and blinked in confusion. Now she was also starting to hear voices. With a grim smile she activated the timer, turned on her heel and just ran. But when she passed Lenka’s corpse she stopped. It was completely bollocks to trudge through the labyrinth of hallways when there was a direct path to the flight deck! As quickly as her maltreated body allowed it she climbed the ladder to the maintenance hatch and sprinted on across the roof. She had no idea how much time she had left. Slightly unsettling. Fortunately the roof wasn’t as long as she had apprehended and she could still see a few escape pods and Voot-Cruisers in the distance.

Her stomach cramped up at the sight. What if her getaway Cruiser was gone?!  _Don’t think, run! Worry about that when it’s time for it,_ the voice in her head chided her and she ran along, her breath the only thing she heard.

The Cruiser wasn’t gone. It stood behind the container units where she’d left it. Quickly she jumped into the Cockpit and stopped. How did you start this thing again? Panic rose in her and even the cold voice in her head couldn’t do anything against it. She had forgotten how to start up the Voot-Cruiser, how fucked up was this?! Frantically she pushed around on the touch screen and only got a warning bleep back.

    “You piece of shit! Why now? God-fucking-dammit!” she screamed and slammed her fist on the dashboard. “I didn’t pull through all this crap just to kick the bucket now!”

With a tired sigh she sank down into the seat. Set would’ve laughed at her for so much tough luck. The thought of him made her smile sadly. At least she wouldn’t have to wait that long for him. And she would see Feorn again.

Ten minutes sure were a long time when you’re stuck in a jet with nothing to do.

Suddenly she tilted her head. Was that just her imagination? No, there it was again; a light flashed up and died out again. Over and over. As if she was dreaming she reached out and touched the button over the light.

    “Jenna? What the hell are you doing, get out of there!” Was that really Feorn’s voice? Sounded like it. Jenna’s eyes snapped open.

    “I can’t, Feorn… I don’t know how…” she breathed, “I’m sorry… I’m so, so sorry.” Her eyes filled up with tears and she touched the bright light as though it was Feorn’s soul shining at her. A chuckle sounded from the airwaves.

    “Yeah, really funny; Irken Voot-Cruisers are the easiest thing you can fly. Why don’t you push that  _inconspicuously_ big, pink button in the middle of the control panel?” She listened and did what he told her.

With a low hum the jet came to life and started hovering. Feorn kept talking and it still seemed like a dream to her but at least it worked. 

Not a minute later she dashed off. Before she could look back the space station exploded without a sound and the blast wave was enough to push the Cruiser. She laughed relieved and wiped a tear from her cheek.

    “I did it! Feorn! I really did it! Now I can save Set!” she cried out and looked down at the light abuzz.

    “ _Jenna_? Dammit, answer the fricking transmission already!” Tork barked through the speaker. Her smile froze and she petrified. Wasn't she talking to Feorn just now? What had just happened? She was so confused that she could only stare at the light. “I swear, if you don’t report back this instant we’re going to shoot down that Cruiser!” The Commander sounded just as real as Feorn had seconds ago. Slowly she reached out.

    “C- Commander? I’m… I’m here.” She muttered unsure and heard an angry snort in return.

    “You got us scared to death, kid! I almost had you shot down, dammit. What was going on with you?”

She shook her head even though he couldn’t see it. What  _was_  going on with her?

    “I’m… just really worn out, Commander. The station is gone and General Lenka with it.” She answered mechanically and exhaled relieved when she spotted the  _Rebellion_ 's lights in the dark void.

    “I can see that, soldier… Believe me, everyone saw that and if not they missed one hell of a show. I’ll see you in the MedBay after Nemon had a look at you. Are you injured?”

She shook her head again and remembered to use her voice.

    “I… I don’t think so.” Before Tork could cut the comm she asked: “How is he?”

He knew she wasn’t talking about Nemon.

Silence. Not good.

    “As good as can be expected under the circumstances. We’ll immediately set course for the system the recluse lives in, promise. Dammit, had I known beforehand that  _Lenka_ of all Irkens would be on that station I had offered you a big pile of money as well. Dammit!” 

Jenna smiled weakly and cut the comm.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Have some ghost-Feorn from outer space!


	53. The Recluse - Pt. 3

### -21 The Recluse –

#### Part 3

  
_A few moments later -_ Lightwing _\- Approaching the_ Rebellion

  
The way back to the ship seemed longer to her than even possible and she caught herself nearly falling asleep on multiple occasions. Jenna felt so tired all of a sudden.

But then she was finally through the launch pad’s lock and opened the cockpit of the Voot-Cruiser. Almost instantly she was touched by countless hands and lifted out of the jet. Loud, cheering voices and applause deafened her and would only die down when Nemon slashed his way through to her vociferously.

    “Put her down, she’s  _injured_!” he shouted outraged and the hands carefully placed her down on the hard floor. Jenna sniffed and got a whole gust of blood into her mouth which reminded her that her nose was still broken. So she continued breathing through her mouth until Nemon eventually managed to push through to her and the pilots and techs, and everyone else who was standing around her, quickly made way for him. She gave him a crooked grin.

    “I made it, Nemon…” she breathed feebly and almost toppled over so that he had to catch her.

    “I know and it didn’t agree well with you… what happened?” the Ilenian grunted sternly and swept her badly damaged suit. Slowly Jenna touched the buckle, the armor retracted and everyone gasped in shock. Nemon’s frown got deeper promptly. “Stretcher!” he called out over his shoulder and placed a syringe with pain killers on her arm. Confused she wanted to fend him off.

    “Nemon, it’s not that bad, I-“, he pulled the trigger, paying her no heed, and the surprisingly  _detailed_  feeling of the needle piercing her skin and muscles made her hiss in surprise.

Reliat and one of the pilots came over with a stretcher and grabbed her with utmost caution to heave her onto it but when they tried to move her there was such a pain flaring up in her ribs that she shrieked. Fear rose in her, how badly was she really injured? Under Nemon’s watchful eyes they carried her from the hangar to the MedBay where the two helpers put her onto an operating table and quickly stepped aside to let Nemon and a few assistants get to her. Another syringe was administered but she screamed regardless when he touched her ribcage.

    “Blast, I’m afraid the remaining Pakrit is inhibiting the pain killers! We can’t operate properly like that!” he sounded alarmed. Jenna put one hand on his arm.

    “I can’t wait, I have to get to Set…” she groaned in pain and had to swallow when the Ilenian, who had grown to her like a father, got such a tormented expression you’d almost think  _he_  was the injured one here. Then his gaze turned resolute and he grabbed the stretcher.

    “Get her into the scanner, now, I want to know if the ribs pierced her lungs or organs, quickly!” he called out to his assistants and Car rushed to her side.

    “Car, please… I- I have to get to Set!” Jenna protested again, reaching out for him ass they passed the unconscious Irken but the Vortian shook her head.

    “There’s nothing you can do for him right now, we’re not even in the right system yet! We should take care of you first and foremost till we’re there… did you cough up blood?” Car asked practiced and she nodded after a moment of hesitation. Yes, she remembered coughing blood after Lenka had sucker-punched her in the hallway.

“She says she coughed blood! Check the lungs and stomach, stat!” the Vortian informed the other assistants and Jenna blinked in thought while she was pushed into the scanner. It couldn’t be her lungs, otherwise she’d still be coughing…

The scanner booted up and she screamed in start as the electromagnetic field of the CAT scan built up, overstraining  the ampullae in her skin. Glaring flashes of light lit up behind her eyes and now the usual noise of the machine set in as well, the loud sound rattling her refined inner ear so badly she briefly lost consciousness.

Immediately Nemon was by her side and turned the scanner off before examining her almost panicked.

    “Something’s not right with her, get me the hand-scan… thanks Car!” He waved the scanner around in front of her face. This one had a smaller electrical field but it was enough for Jenna to roll over to her side and threw up burning bile. “Dammit, we can’t examine her like that!” The Ilenian was already about to get the portable x-ray when she grabbed his arm.

    “I- I’m fine, N-Nemon.” A coughing fit interrupted her and the doctor raised a brow in doubt. “There’s no internal bleeding, look…” she pointed at the vomit and Nemon nodded slowly. “I think what I first recognized as blood was really just the Pakrit… it just tasted like blood.”

Still not completely convinced he inspected her eyes.

    “Then how do you explain your sudden sensibility for electric devices?” he persisted and she spit out the rest of the bile on the floor.

    “Ampullae… of Lorenzini.” She gasped what made him tilt his head.

    “Pardon?”

    “Sensory organs… they can detect changes in electrical fields. The Pakrit allows to manipulate the own body cells.” She explained exhausted.

    “Do you think they will regress?” Nemon asked concerned and she shrugged, regretting that motion immediately.

    “I hope so… can’t you just put me in a cast or splints? I can’t wait any longer, there’s no time!”

    “Jenna… I can’t allow that you get back out there this injured! If you collapse nobody will be there to help you and I highly doubt that Set will be of any help to you… he’s been in a coma ever since you left. You’ll have to carry him and with these injuries…” he stopped and raised his hands in helplessness, “and I can’t even give you anything against the pain!”

Jenna smiled softly and took his hand.

    “It’s okay, Nemon… please don’t blame yourself, you couldn’t know how the Pakrit works. I’m going to be fine, just patch up what you can.” She calmed him quietly and gave him the biggest smile she was capable of without her nose feeling like it was about to fall off her face. The Ilenian sighed and squeezed her small hand that was still covered in the crimson blood of the General.

A cold shudder rushed him at the thought of what she was willing to do just in order to safe this one Irken. By now he was fairly sure that in her mind Jenna had already left her family and friends back on Earth forever and that he, that Set and Feorn as well, had become her new family. It touched him deeply and with another heavy sigh he gestured at his team to x-ray Jenna.

As it turned out she had multiple broken ribs but none of those had punctured her lung so that Nemon administered her the same remedy she had gotten for the healing of her knee, even though he couldn’t be certain that it wouldn’t just get inhibited by the Pakrit as well. After a few painful casts and dressings he tended to her nose. The fracture was smooth, not like her ribs, and was much easier to put in a splint. Jenna’s eyes were locked on Set the whole time; now there were countless cannulas and needles stuck to him, connected to the containers with Pakrit-surrogate. His chest wasn’t heaving far enough to calm her and with every minute passing she grew more nervous.

When Tork finally entered the MedBay she almost jumped him.

    “Please tell me we’re there!” she called out and the Commander nodded with a sober expression.

    “We were able to establish contact with the recluse but I’m afraid you have to go alone. Otherwise he’ll open fire. He was... very clear about that. I’m not really worried that he could cause any serious damage, but it wouldn’t be exactly helpful to Set if he didn’t want to help you anymore because of that.” He apologized and raised his hands. Jenna shook her head and jumped down from the stretcher, staggering.

    “Help me get him to my jet. Now!” Hurried she grabbed her belt and activated her suit while she ran over to Set and helped Nemon take some of the containers from their holders. Tork personally pushed the wheeled bier together with Reliat towards the hangar and Car helped them carry more containers.

    “Once he’s inside you have to be fast. He is very weak.” Nemon looked worried into her eyes. “Jenna, I don’t know what awaits you down there, but be prepared for anything. I would give you a weapon to take with you but the way I see it this guy is extremely paranoid if not even dangerous. Promise me that you will look after yourself, alright?”

His intense gaze made her nod automatically. Then she hobbled ahead to start up her jet. The tech had kept his word and repainted the scratches. The machine felt like a living being to her, greeting her happily as she fired it up.

She was forced to take  _Lightwing_  even though it meant to lay Set halfway on top of her since it was the only jet in the fleet that wasn’t armed and the mysterious recluse would most likely interpret anything else as an act of violence.

There was no time to bid her friends farewell; the second Set was placed somewhat save in the cockpit she closed the canopy and raced the fighter through the launch pad's air lock which immediately closed behind her. Not a second later she shot through the void. Her coordinates got updated and she took a turn to head straight for the tiny moon hiding the shadow of the gas giant. Her makeshift patched up ribs burned when they entered the atmosphere and the jet was shaking from the currents and she tasted blood in her mouth as an artery inside her nose burst open again. Still she kept flying towards the signal her on-board computer received at breakneck velocity. Set gave a faint groan and she reached out a shaking hand to stroke his cheek soothingly.

    “Don’t you worry, Set… we’re gonna make it!” she muttered tensed and nearly screamed out when suddenly the instruments raised an earsplitting alarm. “What the hell…”, was all she managed to gasp before something hit the fighter and shut down all electronics with it. A bright light exploded behind her eyes and blinded her for seconds before the glaring flashes subsided enough for her to realize that the jet was dead and not responding anymore. An electromagnetic impulse missile! The jet rapidly lost altitude and nosedived, and now she did scream in terror. Frantically she tried to start the jet again, the barren ground racing at her quicker and quicker and suddenly the engines gave a coughing thrust bringing the jet halfway into a horizontal position again. Apparently the ignition wasn’t fried!

With smaller and smaller bursts she headed towards a giant crater to make an emergency landing. Jenna didn’t notice how she bit her lip open when she clenched her teeth in concentration and neither did she care for the blood now streaming out her nose in a torrent. There was a moment of complete silence before the fighter belly-flopped with a shriek that sounded like a dying animal, sending a true hammer blow through her entire body. It jumped back up again and then buried into the soft ashes covering the crater’s ground. A cloud of dust swirled up, coating the crashed jet under a thick layer of sand and ashes.

Only now she dared to breathe again and forced her shaking, cramped fingers off the cyclic stick. Set gave a halfhearted moan and this time she was so cautious as to check the atmosphere before jumping out. Since the sensors were out she had to take a chance; pulling the emergency lever of the canopy she pushed it open a slit and bent over to it, hesitatingly breathing in. Her throat didn’t sting and she didn’t taste anything odd but there was still the possibility of an atmosphere made of carbon monoxide, something you wouldn’t notice. Jenna turned to Set and cussed under her breath. She would be able to use her suit’s force field as a breathing mask but she doubted that there was any way to activate Set’s suit.

    “Alright… so it’s Russian Roulette then.” She mumbled and pushed the canopy open. She crawled out beneath Set and jumped onto the wing which tilted under the translocated weight and rolled the jet over to the side. When she cast a quick glance along it she nearly started to cry:  _Lightwing_  indeed looked like a mortally wounded animal. But now was not the time to wail, now it was her top priority to get Set to this mad recluse who had tried to kill her!

With strain she pulled the unconscious Irken out of the cockpit and slid down the wing with him. But that already brought up the next problem: she couldn’t possibly carry the over two meter tall Irk!

Grunting Jenna distributed the suit’s powers anew and realized that she herself was so exhausted that she barely had enough energy left to power the suit. Not good!

She put his arms around her neck and shouldered his upper body. With full power on her legs she managed to drag Set towards the crater’s rim. Soon she started to wheeze and choked multiple times breathing in her own blood. The pitch wouldn’t have been half as bad if she didn’t sink in up to her knees in ashes with every step.

She would never make it out of here this way! A furious scream of despair broke from Jenna’s raw throat. She couldn’t give up! She couldn’t fail! She couldn’t-“

    “Hold it right there filthy creature! Whooo dares entering  _my_  moon?!”  a shrill voice scolded above her and she lifted her head worn out. Her strained brain did notice something strange about that voice besides the terribly shrill pitch but she was too wasted to comprehend what it was.

    “Help…” she simply panted and had to blink against the light illuminating the recluse’s frame from behind him, presaging only a silhouette of. The figure at the edge of the crater was slim and hardly as tall as her but had his arms akimbo in anger.

    “Ah yes, you must be that rebel woman… very well, then I shall take care of you.” The alien grated. Jenna was still trying to figure out what was standing in front of her but when suddenly six metal spider legs shot at her she knew it was an Irken! Terrified she wanted to fight them off to protect Set but they were too fast for her. Two of them already wrapped around Set’s waist and pulled him from her back and with the other four the Irken scuttled away lickety-split.

    “Hey! Wait! Come back!” Jenna yelled and crawled over the edge herself. The Irken with his long, spindly spider legs had no problem at all to get through the fine ashes and with a speed that made her cry out helplessly.

But at least she could see where he was headed: a bright green house stood fairly protected between a group of boulders. A giant satellite dish sat enthroned on the top of a disgustingly violet roof and – she had to rub her eyes – some plastic flamingos were pinned into the dust in front of the house together with four oversized lawn gnomes. The Irken vanished inside the house, slamming shut the door that was decorated with the toilet symbol for “men”.

For a moment she stopped dumbfounded, then she ran as quickly as she could, ignoring the ashes, her aching ribs and her bleeding nose and pushed the door open with a haunted look.

Again she stumbled; she was standing in a hideously decorated living room with a couch and the giant picture of a cartoon monkey above it. A SIR unit sat on the couch and looked at her, grinning gleefully.

    “Who are yoouuuuu?” it asked more happy than distrustful and jumped off the couch. Alert Jenna watched the robot – without doubt the Irken’s SIR unit – slipping into a green dog costume and running around cheerfully. “Who are you, whoooo are youuuuu?” he hollered in a volume that made her flinch and jumped around her feet.

    “I…” she stammered confounded when a loud scream sounded from somewhere beneath her. “Set!” she exclaimed alarmed and searched frantically for an entrance to the lower floors of the base.

Eventually she turned towards the costumed robot that was looking at her with big eyes. “Where. Is. He?” She had to hold back not to yell at the little guy.

For a split second the SIR unit scowled, his eyes glowing red, but then he just shrugged and kicked at a wastebin. It retracted into the wall and revealed a hidden elevator. Quickly Jenna jumped in and made her way down, the robot waved at her happily and disappeared when the wastebin slid back over the opening. In that moment Set screamed again and her insides churned painfully. The second the elevator stopped she stormed along the hallway and suddenly heard a whirring and screeching as if someone was working something with an angle grinder. She bolted through the next best door and froze.

Set was lying face down on his stomach, his arms and legs bound to the operating table with sturdy metal clamps, his Pak wide open, connected to countless cables that lead to a giant screen and on his back hunkered the slight Irken, poking around inside it with multiple sharp tools, a giant pair of safety goggles on his head protecting him from the flying sparks. At her alarmed scream he just placed a finger on his lips, perking up his antennae and tilting his head to one side before he continued torturing Set who faintly groaned under him, crimson and black blood pouring out his back.

    “What are you doing?! Stop!” she yelled hysteric and wanted to run towards him but the strange Irken just made a brusque hand movement as if he was waving away a fly.

    “No human worm babies allowed in here. Get back to the kitchen, I bet GIR’s already making you waffles.” He shuddered from disgust and clenched a gloved hand with a squeaking sound with which he flourished wildly. “Curse these waffles!” he hissed and then continued disassembling Set’s Pak as cool as you please. Confused and not any less worried she just stood there indecisively for a moment. But then she slowly turned around and dragged herself back to the elevator.

She felt so confounded that she got dizzy and had to lean against the elevator’s wall not to collapse. What the hell was all of this?! Who was this wacky  _nutjob_  of an Irken?

Back in the creepy living room she looked around and found the robot-dog in the small kitchen, wildly stirring in a bowl, a mountain of steaming waffles next to him. She felt like Alice after falling down the rabbit hole. Slowly she stepped inside and took a closer look.

There were posters everywhere that didn’t seem fitting to an alien just like the whole house itself…

Her gaze came to rest on one that said “Earth Rocks!” And then the scales fell from her eyes; that what had made his voice sound so strange was the fact that the Irken had talked to her in her own language and not Irken or Vortian. And he had called her a  _human worm baby_! Now she looked around more attentively. Everything seemed like a random collection of terrestrial objects but completely taken out of concept, as if the dweller didn’t know what purpose they served.

    “That… that has to be the Irken they sent to Earth first…” Jenna muttered stunned and at that the robot GIR stopped stirring the waffle dough. With big round eyes he stared at her. “GIR, you visited Earth with your master, right?” she asked excited and sat down at the small table. Little soap bubbles rose from the dough and she spotted a bottle of dish soap on the counter.

GIR nodded with an elongated sound.

   “Oh yeeeees, master was s’posed to destroy all the hoomans. But Tallest betrayed master so he had to release all the chickens and aaaaaall my little piggies. I like piggies.” He cooed and grinned. Confused Jenna nodded but the look from the robot lenses suddenly turned unfocused and he stared blankly into the distance. After a few seconds of silence GIR started stirring again, humming happily, as though the conversation just now didn’t happen. She blinked again.

    “Uhm… then what? What happened?” she chased up.

All of a sudden the little guy leaped off the table and ran around the room screaming at the top of his robot lungs. Completely taken by surprise Jenna could just stare at him wide eyed. With her mouth gaping she watched GIR dashing through the living room, screaming as if he was on fire. This went on for a full minute until the robot suddenly bolted out the door and it got quiet in an instant. She could faintly hear him shrieking outside, dragging a kite along behind him.

Slowly Jenna shook her head. Whatever must’ve happened, apparently the recluse’s SIR unit had lost its mind, what was rather astonishing since it was supposed to be an artificial  _intelligence_. Blood dripped onto her hand and she groaned. She found an old dishtowel and pressed it under her nose to at least prevent losing any more blood than she already had. She had acted just in time, there was a queasy feeling in her stomach and she was already dizzy from…

Hold on, was that  _hunger_? Jenna took a hand from her nose and placed it on her tummy. Yes, she could feel it growling even through her suit and now she could also hear it when another dizzy spell nearly took her off her feet. She was starving!

With an agonized expression she glimpsed at the bowl with waffle dough and the pile of done waffles. Her hand twitched but she quickly shook her head. No matter how hungry she was, she wouldn’t poison herself with dish soap! But the Irken couldn’t run on Pakrit alone, he would need  _some_ sort of food. Jenna searched every counter and every shelf until she finally found what she was looking for: his snack stash!

A small part of her mind felt bad for ravaging the Irken’s food like that but it was quickly smothered by the pure feeling of satisfaction as she munched herself through four bags of chips and chucked down two slush drinks.

After her eating orgy she sank down on one of the wobbly chairs and held her stomach. Nemon had told her once that eating too fast after a period of hunger could cause belly aches and indeed she now felt hellish cramps but the simple feeling of being  _sated_  let her endure the pain without complaint.

 But her coma only lasted a few minutes before her worry for Set came back with full force. Nervous and agitated she stood up and paced through the small kitchen, casting glances towards the wastebin, but nobody showed up.

After a while her legs made themselves felt painfully and Jenna took a seat on the couch with one eye on the entrance to the elevator. She glanced longingly at the TV screen but she doubted that there really was something good to watch, nothing to be exact. Her ribs were aching, the dressing around her chest itched awfully under her suit and finally she gave in, retracting the armor to scratch it. A relieved sigh poured from her lips.

Minutes turned into hours and still nobody came up to her. She was so exhausted that she didn’t even have the energy to feel anxious anymore. Jenna fought the tiredness but she was already yawning continuously and sank deeper into the sofa’s cushion.

Soon she was lying on her stomach, her cheek resting on one hand and barely noticed her eyes closing over and over again. It was warm and cozy in here and the strangely familiar yet completely surreal surrounding did their bit. After another ten minutes she was asleep.        

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so here's me, apologizing in advance with an extra-long chapter because I won't be able to upload next week due to real life stuff, I'm FINALLY getting an actual job with actual monies and I still have to do a fuckton of paperwork (hey, come to Germany, free paperwork for everyone, you don't even need to ask!)
> 
> So.... do you know yet who that recluse is? Like, with the green house? And a stupid robot? Huh, any bells ringing yet? :)


	54. The Recluse - Pt. 4

### -21 The Recluse –

#### Part 4

  
_5 hours later - The Recluse's Base_

  
Jenna was dreaming for the first time in a long while; yet those dreams weren’t all that pleasant: She dreamt of a baby, her baby, she knew that as she cradled it in her arms. But it turned green before her eyes and looked at her with round, golden and red eyes. Feorn’s eyes. She started from the dream but went right back to sleep when she realized she was safely lying on a couch. The next dream wasn’t any better though.

She found herself surrounded by crimson fire and heard screams from beyond the glaring flames. Human screams. Suddenly something colossal strode away over her with wide steps. It was a Tripod from War of the Worlds, a movie she used to watch all the time when she was little.

The flames parted before her and she witnessed how the mammoth machines walked around, catching the fleeing humans. But instead of absorbing them like in the movie they just attached something to their back and put them back on the ground again. After that those humans suddenly charged at the others, grabbing them and pinning them to the ground. Through the fire’s gleam she could see something metallic flashing on the attacker’s backs.

Before she was able to make out what it was she was caught by a tentacle and lifted off the ground herself. She screamed terrified and tried to fight back but couldn’t stop the Tripod, which was actually a giant brain on three legs, to lift her higher and higher when something closed in on her face. A giant, crimson eye sitting in the middle of the brain opened and fixed its eerie glare on her.

_I… can see you… Commme… come to us, Jenna… Come and become a part of us._

The sensation of falling and her startled shout woke her up right as she hit the floor with a thud. Too shocked Jenna just stayed lying on the floor, her heart was pounding in her chest and cold sweat had drenched the bangs of her fringe. She had recognized the Pak before the fall had jerked her from her sleep.

A shadow fell over her. Scared she looked up and into the weirdly human-like eyes of the recluse. The slender Irken blinked at her distrustful. He was wearing an awfully matted black wig on his head which was literally topping it all. She gave a raspy laughter, her throat was still raw from throwing up the Pakrit.

    “How did you even manage to survive on Earth for one day? Your disguise is  _horrible_.”

The Irken pouted insulted and tugged on the wig.

    “Silence, human, as a matter of fact nobody ever recognized me thanks to this  _brilliant_ disguise!” he blustered before his expression got thoughtful and even a little sad.  “Well, uhm… save for  _one_ human.” He sighed and went back into the kitchen to take one of the waffles. Jenna pulled herself up with visible and audible strain; her chest was burning with pain, apparently the fall had gotten her pretty badly and she still felt sick from her binge-eating. She followed the alien and just stood there indecisively for a moment before everything burst out of her.

    “What is this place? Who are you? Why did you shoot me down!?” she added angrily. She had wanted to ask him if Set was even still alive but she got the feeling that the recluse would have told her by now if he had died.

The Irken slowly turned his head towards her, again with this distrustful glare, and cackled.

    “Oh yeees, sorry about that whole shooting-you-down-business, uh, a panic-reaction entirely. You may call me Zim, I bet you have already heard of me…” he replied but she just shook her head.

    “All I know is that you were sent to Earth long before Set and vanished without a trace…” she admitted sheepishly. Now he hissed outraged, spitting crumbs of waffle across the table.

    “Oh, so they’re still slandering me! That’s just like  _them_ to declare me missing and send the next invader straight away for my planet! To take over  _my_ mission!  _My_ …” he quieted down with an exhausted sigh and let his clenched fists sink down powerlessly. She waited quietly until he had caught himself again und sat down on one of the chairs so the little guy wouldn’t have to look up to her while talking. Zim shook his head in frustration. “Eh, it’s no use cursing over it. I never meant anything to them, I was just always a nuisance, a pest and a defect.” Zim mumbled bitter and took a nibbling bite of the waffle, his mouth curling in revulsion.

Jenna felt immediately sympathetic for him and was reminded of Ria. So she wasn't the only one the Tallest had given a raw deal.

    “What happened to you? You’re not under the influence of the Codes anymore, am I right?” she broached the subject again and now his eyes grew big and round. The fact that no one had recognized him on Earth seemed hard to believe, the contact lenses couldn’t possibly disguise the unnatural size of his alien eyes.

    “Oh, you now about the Codes? How?” His curiosity was stirred up, but seemingly his distrust as well again the way he squinted his eyes.

    “I met an Irken on the  _Massive_  when I got lost searching for Set. She used to be a scientist, researching on the Paks and had managed to erase the Codes within her, too… her name was Ria.” She answered wistfully and Zim scratched his wig.

    “Yeah, I think I recall reading one of her works… but it’s not the Codes that suppress us, it’s the Paks themselves.” He added conspiratorial. Jenna cocked a brow.

    “What’s the difference? I thought Irkens could unlock certain urges, like the sexual drive by overriding the corresponding Codes, and that the Paks are just computers and toolboxes connected to your spine.” But she wasn’t too convinced of that herself. How often had she suspected that Set’s Pak possessed a life of its own? Especially when he was unconscious, like the one time after the Prerk attack when she was trying to remove his suit. “If it’s not the  _Codes_  that block you… what is it?”

Zim shook his head, making an iunno sound. Jenna gaped at him and pointed towards the trashcan, now worried all over again.

“Wait, then what the hell were you doing with Set?! How is he, did he…” she stammered but he raised his hands to calm her.

    “Nooo, he’s  _fine_. Are you doubting my superior genius?! I did perform this operation on myself mind you and do I look like it left permanent  _damage_?”

Jenna thought it wiser not to reply to that.

“I don’t exactly know how they influence their host. Did you ever experience that an Irk seems able to  _feel_  for a brief moment before becoming  _normal_ again?” he implied and Jenna was immediately reminded of the scene back in the  _Massive_ ’s MedBay; Set had cradled her and shown genuine affection for her but just a few minutes later he was defending his Tallest again. She nodded.

“So, then how come the Codes fail from time to time? If they were just programs and codes they wouldn’t allow these kinds of blackouts. I tried to simulate a Coding without a Pak on a human test subject but it never worked properly. Back on Earth I once lost my Pak to a human who attached it to his own body. Gradually he went mad and was planning to destroy the planet he used to fight for so frantically. It was as if he was turning into an Irken while I… became different, as though I was turning human without the Pak. Later this incident helped me figuring out that there was indeed a way to get rid of the pain I felt and my erratic behaivour. I found out that Paks can’t be hacked, infiltrated or overwritten, not even by Irken technology. The only thing that can alter a Pak and the Codes are the Control Brains.”

Jenna felt uneasy when he said that, there was something tingling in the back of her head. Ria had told her how these Control Brains erased her status and forced her into serving food to the Tallest.

    “So how do you remove the Codes?” she wanted to know again.

Zim shrugged and her jaw dropped. “Wait a minute, you have no idea how to remove the Codes and you do it nevertheless? This doesn’t make any sense, Zim!” she protested and he curled his mouth into another sulk.

    “Stupid human, I just told you that you can’t change the Paks, so you also can’t “remove” the Codes! The only thing I removed was the _transmitter_.” He hissed in defense. Now she was completely confused and just blinked.

    “Transmitter? What transmitter” Jenna mumbled; she knew that Irkens were able to contact the Armada with their Paks and in return receive orders over the comm system… but why should a simple transmitter be directly linked to something as crucial as the Codes that ensured the invader’s loyalty and emotional suppression? It just sounded too easy…

    “It’s a different transmitter than the one for communication and it took us years to discover it, I didn’t even know something like that even existed inside my Pak. It lies deeply hidden inside the Paks innermost wiring and extracting it is extremely dangerous since it is directly connected to multiple major Pakrit trunk lines. If you chip just one of them it’s over.”

That still didn’t explain to her what that transmitter had to do with the Codes but she had the feeling Zim couldn’t tell her more about that. Instead she changed the subject.

    “You mentioned earlier that one human knew about you… didn’t anybody believe him?” she asked curiously. Zim’s eyes stared into the distance and he snickered quietly, although rather nostalgic.

    “Naah… no one ever believed the Dib until the end. But at that point he didn’t even care anymore. I… I think that was more than ten years ago now.” The Irken recollected.

    “But, didn’t he try to prove to the other humans that you’re an alien?” she chased it up puzzled and the snicker turned into a raspy cackle that had the small Irken shaking on his chair.

    “Of  _course_! He tried everything, just  _everything_  to expose my true identity, oooh how did I laugh! But of course nobody would believe the ramblings of a crazy big-headed boy who chased  _Bigfeets_ in his spare time and the other Earthlings just laughed at him.” his look got sad again. “They laughed at me too because I was different… but at least I had the certainty that I would destroy them all sooner or later.” he hissed and shook a clenched fist. “And then, then the Tallest betrayed me! They deprived me of my mission and broke off any communication. For the first time I suspected that they were just trying to get rid of me all along. I stopped my plans to destroy the Earth and just attempted to contact them, there had to be a chance to prove myself! After a while the Dib realized something wasn’t right and broke into my base – again. Although I think GIR had already given him a spare key by then… anyway, he found me in a pathetic state; my Pak was forcing me to contact the Tallest incessantly even though they wouldn’t answer. I hadn't eaten or slept in weeks. I'd gone completely mad.”

Jenna shuddered when she remembered Set’s behavior before he had his breakdown… and the  _itching._

“Strangely enough he helped me snap out of it and together we worked on a method to heal me from my agony, eventually discovering the transmitter. But somehow the Tallest must have found out about it because before we had figured out how to extract the transmitter an Enforcer came to Earth and destroyed my entire base… I was forced to escape so they wouldn’t kill the Dib and managed to shake them with a few skillful flight maneuvers. I found this moon and after I had my base rebuilt I put our plan into action. Since I had to disconnect the Pak in order to operate on it I only had ten minutes to perform the procedure, otherwise I would’ve died. That’s a safety measurement to prevent Irkens from just throwing their Paks away. Somehow… somehow I was successful. And when it was done I finally understood why the Dib helped me even though I was his worst enemy: because he knew that we were the same; abandoned by everybody and despised, outcasts. Nobody wanted us…”

Jenna was too shaken to react. The fact that this small, semicrazed guy recreated Ria’s work with only the help of a human was near to a miracle.

    “I’m sorry you’ve been through all of this… and I’m sorry you lost a friend.” She breathed moved. Zim smiled pensively.

    “A friend… yes, I guess he was a friend in the end… that old Stinkbeast.”

They fell silent for a while and when Jenna started scratching her broken and itching nose Zim ejected a few tools from his Pak to treat her. At first she was a bit hesitant but he worked swiftly and proficient. On her question as to how he was so good at it he admitted a bit contrite that he had to frequently patch up the Dib because before the Decoding he tended to attack him once his Pak would reach a certain level of frustration. That reminded Jenna of how Set had attacked her in her quarter out of the blue and she nodded silently; all of this was gradually forming a theory in her head and she reminded herself to talk to Nemon about it.

Lastly Zim administered her a reddish fluid into her nose that made her eyes tear up from pain before he remembered giving her a pain killer as well that knocked her out almost instantly. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So now y'all know what happened to the Stinkbeast!!   
> Oh, and I think we all know that Zim shook the Enforcer by pure luck rather than his piloting skills amirite? :D   
> Also crazy dreams and voices wuuaaaaahhhht??? *ominous old man arm-flailing continues*   
> Aughhhh this is so much fun >333 I'm already psyched for next week, are you psyched for next week? Because... you know... stuff :B
> 
> For all of you that don't know who Zim is, just look for the first two episodes of Invader Zim, then you have a pretty good idea who he is x'D that's really all you need to know


	55. The Recluse - Pt. 5

### -21 The Recluse –

#### Part 5

  
_17 hours later - Zim's Base - Table_   
  


When Jenna woke up again she looked at her Chronometer and realized that it was already late afternoon of the next cycle. With a groan she lifted her pounding head off the table and took a look around. She had to blink a few times to notice that the Pakrit-made ampullae where gone! She closed her eyes again and tried to use her ultrasound hearing but it too was gone for good. Relieved she got up from the table and walked over into the living room, her legs stiff from sitting for hours.

GIR was lying upside down on the couch watching a movie, Zim sat beside his trusty mad robot and nibbled on some snacks.

    “What exactly was in that painkiller you gave me?” Jenna groaned and rubbed her face that felt awfully flattened. Zim was about to do his  _iunno_ pantomime again but she was already onto that. “Okay, never mind. I’m just glad that my nose is feeling a lot better actually. Thank you.” She added friendly and Zim’s face turned a bit darker. Jenna fumbled with her fingers for a while, nervous to ask.

“I… I was too afraid to ask you yesterday but… how is Set doing?” she finally managed to utter and Zim put down the snack.

    “He survived the treatment, but his state is still critical. We’ll just have to wait. Don’t worry, Jenna-human, I promise he is going to be fine.” The Irken answered sincerely and GIR gave her a big smile.

    “Yea, Jenna, he’s gun be aaaallriiiight.” The SIR unit shrieked joyful and went straight back to enjoying the movie.

She couldn’t keep a smile herself and decided to return to her jet and check if it wasn't totally trashed. Zim stayed back in the house with GIR but he gave her a hovering tow vehicle along to pull the fighter out of the crater.

When she arrived at the crash site she saw with a tired sigh that a thick layer of dust and ashes had covered  _Lightwing_. With a few kicks against the fuselage she managed to shake off most of it but she still had to wipe the rest off of the canopy with her hands before she was able to open it. Somehow the inside was full of dust, too, and she decided it was best to not start the engines just yet; dust explosions didn’t seem to be the best way to start the day. Instead she activated the long range communications system and radioed the  _Rebellion_  on the encrypted comm line. Jenna exhaled in relief when Tork picked up.

    “What’s the situation down there?” he grunted straightforwardly.

    “He’s  _alive_ , I just don’t know yet if it worked… he should be up on his feet soon.” She reported and heard a reassured huff on the other end.

    “That’s good to hear… we were already worrying about you. We can’t stay here much longer, till the end of the cycle at most. Hurry.” The Commander urged her and Jenna sighed. She just hoped that Set would be up and well by then. And her jet back in business.

    “All right Commander. I’ll get back in touch with you as soon as there’s something new.” The connection was cut and she climbed out of the fighter.

“Okay… then let’s get you out of here.” She growled under her breath and towed the Voot carrier closer.

It was actually a floating platform that was supposed to fly under the jet and lift it up; given that her jet was actually standing on solid ground and not  _stuck_ in it. Her blood-smeared, cracked suit snapped out of its belt and she gave the tail fin a tentative tug. Nothing.

“Oh, come on…” she moaned stressed out and adjusted the power to her legs. There were people on Earth who towed whole trucks with their teeth so what could be so difficult about this? But the jet only budged a hand's width before it got stuck again even though she was pulling with all her strength.   
  
Jenna quit. She was way too tired for any of this and her ribs were burning like hell. Even at the risk of getting blown up she would start the engines. When she climbed back onto the pilot seat her hand touched broken glass and she recoiled even though her fingers were protected by her armor. Confused she looked down and spotted the glass tube Set had given her before she set out to destroy an entire space station. 

She picked it up and already wanted to toss it out the cockpit when she saw something glistening inside. Jenna held her breath. A tiny, sticky drop of Pakrit was hanging from the burst edge of the tube. She didn’t think twice about it and licked it off, cutting her tongue on the sharp glass, and the Pakrit went straight into her bloodstream.

The rush of power was instant, shooting through her body like a wave of pure, raw energy that made her literally jump out of the cockpit. Jenna knew now what she had to do now; she grabbed the rim of the carrier and pushed it into the sand under the wing. Then she shoveled as much dust to the side until she had almost completely burrowed under the jet like a badger. Tail and front were still stuck but the middle was freed so much that she was able to squeeze the carrier underneath it where the extra energy was really benefitting her. With a last feat she pushed the tow vehicle under the fuselage and heard a crunching sound as her fighter was lifted out of the dust shaking like a wounded animal and hovered a feet over the ground. Pleased she took the leash and dragged the fighter along behind her without any effort. When it came to scaling the steep crater wall she lifted the carrier over her head and carefully balanced the plane on her hands. She felt like Superman.

The way back to Zim’s base filled her with exhilaration even though the Pakrit was already wearing off again.

Jenna parked her jet a few meters in front of the house, turning it around so that she would have a nice, long runway to start and brushed sand and dust off her armor as she pushed the door open, already noticing that the house was quiet.

When she looked back up she stopped dead in her tracks and stared at the Irken sitting at the kitchen table. She didn’t dare to breathe, did not dare to speak to him. He hadn't noticed her yet.

    “S- Set?” she breathed and he turned around to her, still wearing the wide MedBay gown and the pants that were too short for his legs. He hadn’t changed on the outside and also seemed to be his usual self; the antennae perked up attentively and the crimson eyes immediately fixed their gaze on her with their usual intensity that made a shiver run down her spine. Jenna took a hesitating step towards him and raised a hand as to touch him although he was more than one room away from her. Set grinned mockingly and snorted.

    “What? Did you really think that I’d die?” he chuckled but then she saw how he flinched after saying it, shooting her and almost scared glimpse. Only now she found the strength to walk up to him and cup his face in her armored hands to look him over.

    “I… I was so afraid I might not make it in time… how- how are you  _feeling_?” she uttered insecure and palmed over his head. Set leaned into her hand unbent and closed his eyes when she stroked over his antennae.

    “Mh, good… definitely better than before. The itching stopped.” He added quietly and wrapped his hands around her waist, his thumbs gently stroking over the green seams of her armor. Jenna scrutinized him, tried to figure out what was different about him. Set’s face was still looking a bit grey from pain but other than that he looked fine.

    “And… what do you think of Zim? What did he tell you?” she asked to keep the conversation flowing. She didn’t want to just blurt out everything that was on her mind at once and possibly overwhelm him since she had no idea of his current mental state.

His eyes widened and he gave a nod towards the trashcan.

    “Oh he would  _not_ stop talking actually… something about confusion and maybe internal conflicts I might experience… and a whole bunch of other stuff I didn’t catch because I was so disturbed by his disguise!” he shook his head and trembled, “At first I thought he was some kind of gross human-Irken hybrid experiment gone wrong. Most of all I was just surprised that he’s so…  _tiny_. I assumed with the amount of time he was away from Irk and living on Earth… he could’ve maybe grown a bit  _taller_.” He tried a laugh but it sounded awkward and died down rather quickly when Jenna didn’t join in and he averted his gaze. Something was troubling him and she was certain that Zim wasn’t kidding about these inner conflicts. It made perfect sense to her: to suddenly be confronted with actual emotions had to be downright traumatic to some extent. She grabbed one of the chairs and sat down across from him, gently taking his hands into hers.

    “Set? Do you remember what I told you about the Tallest? That they put a bounty on your head? You said it had to be a mistake… did you think I was lying to you?” she asked softly and saw how he cringed in his seat, his antennae whipping through the air. He looked reluctant but also… frustrated.

She wanted to calm him down but he shot forward and put grabbed her chair's backrest with one hand, leaning in on her with narrowed eyes until his face was only inches from hers. Jenna flinched in start, her heart raced away in fear. Did it not work? Had the operation been a failure?!

    “First you’re going to tell me… how was it for  _you_? Thinking I might die?” he asked under his breath and she swallowed nervously.

    “I… I was afraid. I was so afraid for you and the thought of losing you… it was unbearable! I felt as if a part of me would be gone forever.” The jump-scare and all her emotions rushed her and she clasped both hands over her mouth to quiet a sob. Set exhaled and lifted her off the chair to pull her onto his lap. She pressed against his chest and wrapped her arms around his neck to get even closer. He was breathing calmly under her, he was warm, he was  _alive_.

    “I see… so that’s what I felt when you died back then. It was only a short moment, but I’m certain it felt like what you described." he mumbled and Jenna hugged him tightly. He didn’t seem to quite understand what was going on inside him yet but now she was sure that Zim had been successful. And the sole fact that he wasn’t on the brink of dying anymore was enough for her. “I know you weren’t lying to me… it makes sense to me; everything. How they tried to kill you and cover it up to make sure I would stay their loyal servant, that they ordered the guards to attack us…  And then this… this  _call_!” he spat out with a hiss and Jenna almost forgot to breathe. “I recall every word of it and none… none was honest. I- I don’t know how I could ever fall for this, what-“, Set looked down on her and shook his head in disbelief, “what was I thinking trying to contact them?” he whispered in gruesome realization and cradled her quickly.

    “It’s okay, Set. You didn’t call them. You came after me on your own just to find me, and now we’re both here. That’s all I care about.” She reassured him and returned the embrace.

    “Jenna?”

She trembled when he called out her name. It had been so rarely that she wasn’t really used to the sound of it. And she liked it.

    “Hm?” she cooed and the Irken leaned away to look at her.

    “You…  _liked_ the Djelb, right? You almost killed yourself after he died… and when you say that with me you felt as if a part of you would be gone… does that mean you like me less?” His glare got darker as he came to realize this. Jenna took a startled breath and quickly shook her head.

    “No Set! You’re right, I liked Feorn, a lot actually, but that doesn’t mean I like you any less! Feorn’s death… just reminded me so much of Ria. I blamed myself for Ria’s death and when Feorn died and there was nothing I could do, it was as if I was back in that cell, watching her die.” She explained but Set’s frown didn’t ease. “I was so devastated because I thought I would only doom everyone around me and I was afraid the same might happen to you, but I didn’t want to admit it and that’s why I shut you out. And when you lay there dying…” she grasped his hands again and looked him in the eyes. “Set… you’ve hurt me very badly. You took me from my world and from everything I knew and loved. You inflicted so much pain on me, physically and mentally, that I could’ve easily been broken by it. And yet I risked everything to save you.”

Now his glare faltered and lost its acerbity.  Jenna carried on: “I rescued you from the Prerk and stayed beside you although they’d offered to take me with them. I fought for you in the arena even though I could’ve let you die in my stead. I came back to you although the Vortian dealer on Free Haven could’ve helped me to get away. And I abused the rebels’ and Feorn’s trust to save you from your crashed ship while it would have been so easy to just let you die down there. And I destroyed an entire space station on my own just to get help for you. Do you still think that I don’t like you?” she added breathlessly and gave him a crooked smile. Set stared at her gaping, she could literally watch him realize. Then he suddenly grinned and wrapped his arms around her so tightly it knocked the air out of her lungs and made her ribs sting.

    “No… I don’t think so…” he murmured into her ear and gently kissed her neck. “I… I’m sorry.”

Jenna returned the embrace and exhaled shakily.

“You once told me that you  _loved_ that other human… the one you protected with your own life. You protected me with your life as well, from the Prerk and the rebels… does that mean…” he pondered and she looked up to him, a shy smile on her lips. When she nodded sheepishly his eyes widened stunned. “Oh!” Set could only utter before his grin got even bigger. His antennae flicked back and that little chirr chimed from his chest.

    “So?” she asked curiously. “How does that feel?”

He nodded vehemently what made her giggle.

    “Good, really good actually… But I also feel lousy somehow… as if it wasn’t right. As though it didn’t make any sense.” The confusion and dissension of his feelings made him furrow his brows again. Jenna just sighed.

    “Well, it doesn’t have to make sense right now, it just is.” She replied quietly and squeezed him. He would have to learn how to interpret his unknown emotions but at least that was something she could help him with. And there was also always Nemon if need be.

“Where did Zim go by the way? I wanted to thank him for everything. Which you should do as well, Mister.” She said exhausted and stroked over his back and Pak distracted. Strangely enough it seemed less statically charged than usual.

    “Back to his lab, I think he was talking about performing tests on squids.” After a short moment he let his hands sink down, with a nimble motion he had deactivated her suit and was already groping her ass. Jenna flinched startled and grabbed his arms.

    “H- Hey, are you crazy? This is someone else’s house, we can’t just…” she hissed but he wasn’t deterred by her complaining. He pulled her closer to bite the crook of her neck which made her sigh involuntarily.

“Mh, Set, I- I’m  _serious_! Stop it!” she gasped panicked as he slipped under her top, grazing her breasts a bit too gruff whereat her ribs protested.

    “No.” he just said and let his thumbs scratch over her nipples. “I want to pay you back  _appropriately_.” His tongue slid through her clenched lips to curl around hers. As much as she tried to fight his caressing she melted away under his touches and soon wasn’t in control over the sounds she made.

    “Why are you- ahh – still such an –  _uhh_ – asshole?!” she moaned short of breath and felt the naughty grin against her breast when he briefly let go of her pap.

    “ _Tch_ , don’t believe you can change my personality as you please as well…” the Irken growled throatily and slipped one hand into her pants. “And now use your mouth for something better than whine around.” As to underline his words he dealt her clit a firm stroke. Jenna gasped for air surprised and clawed into his shoulder. But when he kept stroking, rubbing and fingering her she let go of the last bit of self-control she had left and finally took one of his antennae into her mouth. Set moaned quivering and his touches got harder. She moved along with his hand as he entered her with one finger to rub her g-spot while his thumb was still working her clit. Little screams escaped her mouth and she reached into her pants, wrapping her hand around his pulsing erection and stroking him up and down.

He growled huskily and quickened his movements as if it was a competition.

    “Oh fuck!” she panted ecstatic and didn’t even try anymore to mind her voice; every little touch sent waves and waves of pleasure through her body and she clung desperately to him. Set pressed her closer to his body and licked over her lips.

    “Come on…” he huffed strained and tried to delay his own climax for as long as possible while she came closer and closer to hers.

   “Shit, ahhn,  _Set_! I- I…” She came with a quiet whine and her fingertips dug into his shoulder. He cupped her hand that was still stroking his cock and came only seconds later; a clear, sticky fluid squirted against her belly and he slumped back into the chair. Jenna held his head pressed against her shoulder and waited for the Pak’s shock.

It didn’t come. Terrified she stopped and waited for a while longer but the reanimating jolt from the Pak just wouldn’t come!

“Set?!” she cried out in panic and heard a deep grumbling vibrating against her skin.

Set leaned away and looked at her from half closed lids, a bit reluctant but apart from that completely fine.

    “What is it now? Can’t I at least… catch my breath?” he panted exhausted and she just stared at him in confusion. What the hell just happened?

    “I was worried! Your Pak didn’t revive you as usual and I… thought…” she stammered and broke off. Then he seemed to understand.

    “Oh… yeah… weird, I didn’t even pass out.” Set grunted but it sounded lackadaisically. Instead he pulled her closer and chirped next to her ear. “That was great! Let’s do that again when we’re back on the ship.” He proposed excited and kissed her. Jenna was completely dished and allowed herself to sink into his arms, glad that the tall Irken could hold her without any trouble.

   “ _Right_ … and right after that I ask Nemon to mix me some of that stuff the Prerk leader gave me to knock you out!” she retorted struggling for breath whereat he furrowed his brows with a pout. Then she cleared her throat impatiently and he gave her a confused blink.

“Oh it’s nothing, really… could you just remove that  _mess_ of yours?” she hissed and he grinned caught.        
  
  


After Set had somehow managed to get rid of all the evidence he was already playing around with her top again but she was prudent enough to quickly reactivate her suit and slide off his lap. A nervous little cough sounded from the living room and she wheeled around. Zim was standing indecisively inside the doorway and looked so traumatized that Jenna went beet-red in an instant. If the recluse had only half as many security cameras installed as Set had on his ship he would’ve been able to watch them from at least four different angles, five if he had also installed one under the table.

She already wanted to stammer a halfway convincing apology but the small Irken just gave her a lopsided sneer and stopped her with a wave of his hand.

    “I see that everything seems to be alright. Your mothership hailed a moment ago, you’re supposed to return ASAP. They sounded pretty concerned.” He said and she pricked up her ears. Tork had told her that they would wait until the end of the cycle but not that it was this urgent. Something was definitely wrong.

    “Thank you for everything, Zim… I- I can’t even tell you how grateful I am!” she stumbled moved. The strange Irken with his even stranger disguise smiled.

   “It was nothing, really… I’m just glad I got to see a human again for a change. It… can get pretty lonely on this moon even with GIR around. Take care you two.” He replied softly and she gave him a parting hug. Set did something astonishing: he sank down on one knee so that Zim was towering a bit over him.

    “You saved my life… I am in your debt. Should you ever need my help, let us know.” He said solemnly and Zim looked like he was about to faint having such a high ranking invader bow to him like that.

When they walked out the door GIR was sitting on a fencepost and was waving so hard at them that his arm literally disappeared.

    “Byyyyyy ladyyyy!” he squealed and Jenna couldn’t help but wave back at him. Set helped her onto the jet’s wing and used his spiderlegs to jump on it himself. She returned his prideful grin.

    “Seems like you’re really back to your old self.” She commented and he activated his own suit what made his grin become even wider. 

Jenna let Set climb into the cockpit first and sank down on his lap. “I’m really proud of you. What you did just now, that was very polite of you.” She said smiling and started the engines. “Do you want to fly?”

Set shook his head and just wrapped his arms around her.

    “No, it’s alright. I trust you.” He murmured and the jet took to the atmosphere.     

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Set is back! Again... man, this guy is tough as nails! I mean, he could lose a limb and still fight yo mama with the other hand on his back x'D
> 
> I'm having a rough time atm~ work is hard and I'm on the road from 6 am to 7 pm. I can't really do anything else besides writing but at least I have that. It really keeps me going, so let me just say thank you! Thank you for all your support and love ;-; ♥


	56. The Admiral

###  **\- 22 The Admiral –**

_Ten minutes later –_ Lightwing _– Course:_  Rebellion

 

    “Set?” Jenna asked into the silence and got a quizzical grunt in return.

“You’re so quiet… are you sure you’re feeling okay?” She was slightly concerned but tried not to let it show.

    “Yes… I’m just…  _thinking_.” He answered slowly and squeezed her lightly to reassure her.

    “Oh! Well… just let me know if you want to talk about something, anything.” She replied quite confused but assumed behind his silence that Set simply needed more time to process his new feelings so she didn’t press him any further.

The  _Rebellion_ met them halfway and her misgiving grew the closer they got. For some reason Jenna was expecting to hear Feorn’s ghostly voice from the airwaves again but the radio stayed quiet all the way until they landed in the hangar where Tork and Nemon were already expecting them, just like a dozen crew members and pilots who were whispering excited.

Worried she slid off the wing and looked back and forth between the two. But they only had eyes for Set jumping off the wing nonchalantly using his spider legs to break his fall what had some of the aliens take a few steps back in start. He was fit for service again and he showed it off vainly.

Nemon turned to Jenna stunned.

    “How did it go? What was the recluse like, what did he do?” he blurted out and Jenna pouted.

   “ _Hello_ Nemon, I’m also happy to see you. What’s up, what was so urgent?” she asked in turn and the Ilenian blinked befuddled when she already answered his question. “Well, the recluse is an Irken.” she continued. “Precisely the one the Tallest first sent to Earth over ten years ago. Not so he could conquer it but more as a measure to get rid of him. And just like any recluse he came across… well, a bit  _bizarre_. I don’t know for sure what he did to Set’s Pak and he himself just told me that he’d only removed a transmitter of some sort, but it worked… it really worked, Nemon!” She said the last bit under her breath and the four eyes widened.

    “Fascinating…” Nemon uttered and shot Set a scrutinizing glimpse who just addressed Tork:

    “Commander, thank you for making it possible for Jenna to save my life, I’m in your debt… again. Of course I will resume the task previously assigned to me.” He said dutiful and without his usual reserve, and Tork nodded with a small grin.

    “That’s what I like to hear; as soon as Nemon gives you the all clear you can work on the fighters again. Jenna, you’re coming with me.” The Vortian summoned her and she looked from him to Set surprised.

    “Go on, I’ll see you later.” Nemon helped out and patted her shoulder encouragingly. She quickly squeezed Set’s hand and ran after the Commander. He led her to the Bridge, giving a few orders to change the course and sank down on his chair.

    “I don’t believe I have to tell you how impressed I am by you, human, and how grateful. If the situation wasn’t as  _chaotic_ as it is right now I would love to officially assign you to the pilots and constitute you a  _hero_ of the Resistance…” he sighed but Jenna shook her head and raised her hands deprecatingly.

    “That’s alright, Commander, I think I’ve had enough battle experience for now… I’m glad if I can just keep working in the MedBay and not be standing in the middle of crossfire that soon again.” She admitted and Tork gave her a lopsided sneer.

    “Well, for that matter… Home Base called, we’re to return immediately. They sounded pretty demanding.” He said and she looked at him confused.

    “Home Base? You don’t mean…”

He nodded.

    “Jep, we’re headed for the planet where the Resistance has its central base. You have to understand that I had to send the admiralty my daily reports on the occurrences on board and all that jazz.” At her confounded glance he leaned forward. “Which means that our leader knows that we have a wanted and highly infamous Irken invader with a huge bounty on his head on board and that you’re the one who disobeyed my command and authority in order to save him. He also knows of Feorn’s death and the  _role_ Set’s SIR unit had in it. The fact that they are recalling us right now can certainly mean bad news… or might have absolutely nothing to do with you and Set.” He had noticed her terrified expression since he broke off.

    “Wh- What do you mean with  _bad news_? Do you think they’re going to lock him up? You know I won’t let that happen!” she protested but Tork just raised his hands.

    “Jenna, the crew might actually be warming up to him now because of what happened but the rest of the Resistance only knows him as a dangerous, violent Irken invader! You can’t honestly expect them to welcome him with open arms. Those people lost everything to the Empire and they will riot if we just show up with an invader like him who isn’t in chains at least! We have to be careful about this. And besides, what’s your plan if it really comes to that? Are you willing to kill all of those who are just obeying the Admiral’s commands?” He snorted dismissively. Jenna’s fingers were twitching restlessly and she had to clench her hands into fists, a sudden wave of anger engulfing her mind.

    “Who knows? You saw what happened to that space station…” she hissed impulsive and now he raised his hands in defense.

    “Hey, calm down kid… I don’t think that they’re stupid enough to provoke you, after all they just received my report about your fight against Lenka along with the footage we were able to record. Jenna, I just wanted to let you know and be prepared so you wouldn’t be completely taken by surprise (and do something stupid) when they want to interrogate you two. And believe me, they will. Unfortunately I have no say in this and I can’t do anything against it, I have my orders as well… and some of them I have already flouted.” He apologized. The human sighed.

    “Welp, and now I probably won’t be able to sleep a  _wink_ until we’re there…” she complained and ran her fingers through her hair. She really had to take a shower. Tork gave her a nod, she was dismissed. But before she went out the door he called after her:

    “And don’t you think about to just hop into your jet and do something completely  _foolish_ , you hear me?”

Jenna stopped on the doorstep and looked back over her shoulder.

    “Don’t worry, I take my oath quite seriously, Tork. If they should take Set away from me I’ll just destroy another station and get him back.” She replied and made her way to the MedBay.

When she came through the door Car flung her arms around her neck and Reliat put a hand on her shoulder with a big smile.

    “About time you show your face in here again! I worked overtime for cycles!” the Vortian growled salutatory and Jenna laughed.

    “Yeah, Car, I missed you too. Hey Reliat, is Set already gone?” she asked when she couldn’t spot the Irken anywhere. Car snickered.

    “Oh yes, your  _boyfriend_  already got back to work.” She smirked and got a punch on her arm. “Hey, I’m kidding!” she rowed back but Jenna grinned at her.

    “Me too, watch what happens when I’m  _serious_.” Something in her eyes seemed to have scared Car and Jenna quickly laughed again to escape the situation. Nemon approached them with a soft smile.

    “Set is in excellent condition and apart from his still splinted arm everything appears to be fine. But he should be able to take the clamps off soon now, his Pak is doing a great job healing him even though the Codes are gone… apparently there seem to be no side effects at all.

That reminded Jenna of what Zim had told her about the Paks and she freed herself from Car’s embrace.

    “Nemon, can I talk to you for a second?” she asked in a hushed voice and he walked her over to one of the stretchers in the back part of the station.

    “Of course, I wanted to take another look at your injuries anyways. Is everything alright?” he wanted to know immediately but she was quick to nod while rucking up her top so he could change the dressings around her torso.

    “Yeah, don’t worry. It’s just… I came to know something interesting from Zim, the recluse. He told me that the Paks are really responsible for the suppression of emotions and urges and that the Codes just exist to communicate with an Irken’s Pak. It came to me when he was talking about how only those Control Brains are able to manipulate the Paks, and I asked myself: what exactly are they? When I threw up the Pakrit it tasted just like blood… why would a machine need blood?” she asked and Nemon’s four eyes narrowed, his hands on her skin paused.

    “What exactly are you getting at?” he muttered but she was sure he was already sensing what she was about to say.

    “Back on Earth there was a time when movies about Science Fiction and supernatural phenomena were all the rage. Dozens of them dealt with robots and computers rising up against humanity and artificial intelligences from outer space trying to conquer Earth. You see, we were actually quite prepared for an invasion.” She added cynically and Nemon smirked.

“What I’m trying to say is: what if the Paks aren’t just inanimate objects connected to an Irken’s back but rather  _alive_? Some sort of synthetic life form!”

Nemon’s eyes grew round in surprise.

    “That is… I admit I've never really thought of that. But I don’t think that’s the case, Jenna. The Irkens surely would know if the Paks on their back were another life form. You said your friend Ria experimented on them, right? I’m sure she would’ve found out if what she was looking at had been another living being.” There wasn’t even doubt in his voice, the Ilenian simply considered it impossible. Jenna shrugged disappointed.

    “I know how crazy this sounds. But what about the Steel Hunters? They’re part synthetic, aren’t they? Or at least not completely organic like you and me. Couldn’t it be possible that the Pak’s vital signs are just so  _alien_ that they can’t be recognized as vital signs?” she interposed, trying to give her theory a bit more plausibility. Nemon sighed.

    “You sure are relentless once you’ve set your mind to something… maybe that’s why you get along with Set so well. Alright, I will try to find out more about this, but I don’t think Set would allow me to experiment on his Pak without any real idea of what I’m doing.” He said and she grinned crookedly.

    “Probably not and I wouldn’t feel comfortable with it myself, not so soon after his critical state. Thank you Nemon, maybe we’ll find a way to defeat the Empire with this.” She cheered him up and left the MedBay to pay the mess hall a visit, her Chronometer showed that it was almost evening and she noticed just now how famished she felt again. All this fighting seemed to have used up her body's entire reserves.

When she entered the mess hall she took a quick look around and hardly believed her eyes for a second when she saw Set sitting among a group of pilots! They were talking quietly and he just listened, nodding from time to time.

The Steel Hunter named Quor spotted her standing in the door and waved her over. Curious Jenna joined them and was reluctant at first to sit right next to Set since she feared it would make the whole situation awkward for the others but the Irken put his hand on her hip and just pulled her onto the empty seat next to him. She rolled her eyes mentally.

    “Hey, what’s up?” she asked into the group and noticed the sober faces.

    “We’re telling stories about Feorn. Set wanted to know who he was.” One of the Vortians answered and now she shot Set a more than gobsmacked look.

    “Really?” she said moved but he just shrugged it off.  _Hmph_ , so his pride had also survived.

   “We were just done telling how you piloted for the first time. That was a hoot.” An Ilenier added chuckling and she grimaced, her freshly resurfacing sorrow pushed away by the memory.

    “Hey, I wasn’t  _that_ bad! Otherwise I wouldn’t be sitting here.” She joked and felt Set’s fingers digging into her side; so he was still sensible about scenarios entailing her possible death. She stood up to finally get something to eat. When she returned to the table a heated discussion had broken out about which maneuvers were the best to elude homing missiles. Set threw in that asteroids were a good way to jumble the rocket’s systems due to their amount of metal and soon the discussion turned into one about how to steer through an asteroid field.

Jenna grinned contented and attended to her dinner.

When she was done she wanted to return to her quarter and Set stayed another while with the pilots. She was so relieved and glad to  see that he was finally starting to discard his former distrust and trying to actually get involved with the other crew members.

In her quarter she first of all removed the dressing around her ribs and hissed with a shiver when she saw the huge hematoma stretching across her entire ribcage. Her nose was also blue under the splint but at least it wasn’t hurting anymore what possibly was thanks to the stuff Zim had injected into it.

Exhausted she stepped into the shower and let the hot water run over her body with a pleased groan. Jenna closed her eyes but she barely had time to enjoy her shower; it knocked at the door. Quickly she grabbed her baggy pullover and slipped into it before opening the door. Set looked down at her, lost in thoughts and he had this deep crease between his eyes again as if something was making him angry.

    “Everything alright?” Jenna asked softly and stroked over his arm. At first he flinched back but when she reached out further he allowed her to take his hand and pull him into the bathroom. Then they just stood there, quiet, and Jenna looked up to him, wondering what was going on in his head but sensible enough to not inquire yet again. Instead she pulled the sweater over her head and dropped it carelessly on the floor. Set didn’t follow her lead straightaway and let his hand wander down over her shoulder but stopped when he saw the enormous bruises.

She smiled and was already about to reassure him that she didn’t mind but he just grabbed her around her waist and lifted her off the ground without a word. Set carried her over to the bed and dropped her not very gallantly on the mattress. “Ouch…” Jenna mouthed rubbing her side and watched him pacing through the room, shooting her a short glance and picking up his pacing again. At first she felt a confused laughter rising in her throat but then she noticed his upset expression. She sat upright.

“Set? What’s wrong? Does your arm hurt?” she asked concerned and he stopped in his steps, his shoulders trembling as with anger.

    “No, it’s… why are you  _doing_ this?!” he replied with his voice barely in control.

    “What? What am I doing?” Fear was creeping up on her, the fear that it hadn’t worked after all, that everything had been for nothing. “Set, please tell me what’s-“

    “How can you still be with me after all I’ve done? How can you still want to sleep with me despite all the pain I’ve caused you?! Why… why did you stay with me when you could’ve been happy with  _him_?” he snapped at her and wheeled around. Jenna recoiled when she saw the pain on his face.

“You should be disgusted by me… you should  _hate_ me! I understand now… I understand now why you’ve done everything to save your creators from me, why you shielded this human with your own body and why you tried to protect the Djelb from me… They were all good to you and I… I’m the  _monster_  that took you from them and did all this to you! And yet you are still here and risk your own life to save mine… I just don’t  _get_  it, it makes no  _sense_!” he snarled and stared at his hands, baring his teeth in self-loathing. Slowly Jenna slid off the bed and walked over to him. Set wanted to draw back but she grabbed hold of his wrists and pulled them down to reach his hands. He avoided her gaze.

    “It’s true… you took me from them and caused me all this pain…. Would you do it again?” she asked and he flinched startled.

    “ _No_!” he breathed and shook his head. Jenna smiled

    “Then it’s alright. You know, I stopped to really hate you when I realized that this was not  _you_. You were just like a SIR unit, and only did what you were told. You couldn’t decide for yourself what was right and wrong and the Codes prevented you from ever experiencing true sympathy for anyone else than you or your own kind. But there were those little moments; small, brief flashes in which you acted different than what your Code was dictating you. And that was the proof for me that there had to be more than just your brutality and cold efficiency; when you saved my life and did everything to get me off of the  _Massive._ ”

Set let her draw him to the bed and sat down on the edge, he still wasn’t convinced but at least he had calmed down. Jenna cupped his face in her hands and gently thumbed over his cheeks.

“The fact that this is affecting you so much all of a sudden only shows me even more that I now have the  _real_ Set before me, the one with all of the feelings and emotions he’s supposed to have. You’re still a  _lecher_ and a vain, proud and jealous  _jerk_ but you own up to your mistakes and you’re obviously regretting what you did.” She resumed and he pulled her closer to his body, resting his forehead against hers.

    “Your friends on Earth must think that you’re dead… they probably feel like I did when I thought I’d lost you…” he muttered quietly.

    “Yeah… they probably do think I'm dead. Set… what do you feel for me? When you think about you’d have to let me go, right now, how do you feel?” she asked tensed and he froze.

    “I… I don’t  _want_ to let you go. I can’t! I want you to stay with me, sing to me and… I feel so angry at the thought of you leaving, but also… sad? Is that right; sad? What is that feeling?” he wanted to know both confused and annoyed because he couldn't grasp it. She kissed him gently and fought back the tears filling her eyes.

    “That’s called love.” She breathed and he chuckled quietly.

    “Love…” he repeated thoughtfully, “it feels so different from what I always thought it was.” He pulled her closer. “I love you, Jenna.”

    “I love you, too, Set.” She replied with a relieved laughter and kissed one of his antennae what made him shiver. But when he looked at her again his eyes were big and he leaned away from her.

    “Do you  _want_  to go back? I mean… I don’t want to let you  _go_ but if it would make you happier to be with your own people… then… I guess I could visit you?” But he sounded choked up and so miserable that she pushed him away at arm’s length and gave him a pensive look.

    “No… I don’t think I want to go back.” She mumbled, surprised by her own answer. Set stared at her just as bewildered.

    “Why not? Wouldn’t you be happier to leave this war behind?”

She slowly shook her head as she realized what this would mean.

    “Nothing… would be the same as before. I couldn’t tell anybody where I’ve been and what happened and most of all what might come, because no one would believe me. I couldn’t look at Daniel without being reminded of you and he wouldn’t understand why I suddenly don’t have the same feelings for him anymore because I’d miss you so much. I’m  _scared_ of the Earth… being trapped on that planet again like an isolated island, just waiting for the armada to come some day without being able to do something about it; and just dream of the stars than seeing them with my own eyes. And only humans around me… no, I want to stay with you, with Nemon, Car and the rebels. I want to wake up beside you and know that there’s someone who can protect me from the Tallest.” She said with steady voice and Set sighed quietly.

    “Thank you.” He murmured and pulled her onto the bed with him. For a while they just stayed like this and didn’t move. Until Jenna suddenly contorted her face and jumped up.

“Hey, what’s wrong?” Set asked surprised but she quickly ran into the bathroom and closed the door. “Jenna?!”

    “It’s nothing, let me just… augh  _shit_!” He heard her cursing through the door and sat up aghast. At first he had feared that she would lock herself up again but she already came out a few seconds later, her face dark red. Silent he watched her taking one of these tiny panties he liked so much out of her backpack and quickly putting it on before she sat down on the bed again, her fingers sheepishly hooking into each other. “Uhm… there’s  _something_ I need to tell you… what I should’ve told you way earlier, actually. I won’t sleep with you the next four to five cycles. It  _depends_.” She started with hesitation and he furrowed his brows scandalized.

    “Why not?!” he demanded to know.

    “Because I’m… bleeding.” Jenna sighed and clasped her abdomen as another cramp came over her. The Irken’s eyes went wide in shock.

    “What?! But how- did I hurt you?” He was already about to jump to his feet. “Come on, let’s get you to Nemon – do you want me to carry you?”

She grabbed his arm and pulled him back with gentle force.

    “No, no, it’s nothing serious, don't worry. On the contrary; it actually means I’m alright and healthy. Nemon already knows about this. Listen: Human women have a reproductive cycle, okay? And, well… at the end of this cycle there’s a discharge of the mucosal tissue that has been building up…” she went silent when she saw the slightly grossed out expression on his face. “It bleeds.” She summed it up and scrunched up her face. Stupid cramps!

Set scrutinized her.

    “Does it hurt? You look like it hurts.” He noted and she nodded.

    “A little… But nothing I couldn’t handle. Compared to what I’ve been through this is nothing. Let’s just go to sleep, I’m completely whacked.” She replied and crawled under the sheets. Set was chuntering quietly, he still seemed to be at odds with the idea to not be able to have sex with her for five whole days. But at least she could rest assured that his disgust would keep him from trying it anyway. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So we're about to finally meet the leader of the Resistance, Admiral Xakahr!! Also hooray for menstruation x'DD I'm so gross, excuse me I'll be gross somewhere else now.


	57. The Admiral - Pt. 2

###  **\- 22 The Admiral –**

#### Part 2

  
Jenna was dreaming again. Dreaming the same nightmare she had experienced in Zim’s base. The Tripods were there again stomping through the crimson flames, only this time around they were giant Paks with three legs chasing and trying to capture her.

_Where are you? Where are you hiding? Come here… don’t fear us._

Jenna ran and ran, holding her baby in her arms. She looked down on it and saw how it turned green and blue, staring at her with wide eyes that were glowing red and golden in the flames. She said something to it, begging him to hold on as his eyes started bleeding black blood before she was jerked up towards the gigantic Pak and something lowered on her face while someone called her from far away.

    “Wake up!” Set called out and she woke up with a start. She looked into his wide opened eyes and the dream already broke apart and vanished. Jenna tried to recall as much as she could but the more she thought about it the more it slipped her memory.

    “Set, what…” she muttered and he stopped shaking her.

   “You were screaming! Are you in pain?” he asked alarmed and she just yawned.

   “No, no. I’m fine, it was just… a nightmare. I was just dreaming.” She answered and cursed herself for having already forgotten about that dream.

    “You did  _what_?” He was still confused.

Now Jenna raised a brow.

    “I was dreaming, Set.” She repeated and he just blinked at her.

    “I don’t understand…” he sounded irritated, as though he was convinced that she was somehow pulling his leg.

Now she sat up concerned and gave him a scrutinizing look.

    “Set, you seriously don’t know what dreams are?” she realized and he made an annoyed face.

    “Of course I do! They’re like ambitions and wishes, right? But I find it weird that humans can have them when they’re sleeping… what’s the point of that?” he replied bewildered and put his antennae back on his head when he noticed her perplexed gape.

    “Set… you don’t dream when you sleep?” she said with pity in her voice and he felt even more confused and a bit offended, was that not normal?

    “No, I don’t think so! And I don’t know why I’d need to! It must be terrible if you wake up screaming like that!” he tried to defend himself and Jenna shook her head smiling.

    “Not all dreams are bad. Dreams are like… stories you get when you sleep, like movies in your head. Some of them feel very realistic and you can even experience sensations like falling down or stubbing your toe. I, for instance, often dream that I can fly if I just spread my arms like this.” She explained and smiled softly. Set tilted his head to the side.

    “So you’re basically hallucinating in your sleep? That sounds dangerous!” he retorted and she shrugged.

    “Well, it’s not exactly dangerous, but rather healthy. When you dream your brain gets rid of all unnecessary information and processes the things occupying your subconsciousness. It’s not really completely explained how dreams work and what they’re actually for.”

    “And are there also bad dreams?” he wanted to know. She lay back down on her side and snuggled up against his chest.

    “Yes, they are called nightmares… often you’re being chased in them and can’t move or you dream about falling down. And even though humans spent most of their sleep dreaming we can’t remember the majority of those dreams, only those shortly before we wake up. Who knows, maybe now that you’re no longer controlled by the Codes you can actually dream, too.” She mumbled and was already about to go back to sleep.

    “What did you dream?” Set asked curiously and put his arm around her to pull her closer and to place the blanket around her again. Jenna shook her head.

    “I don’t know… but it was a bad dream.” She breathed and he cradled her in his arms with a quiet chirr.

“The Commander told me that we’re on the way back to the Resistance’s home planet. Their leader knows about you and what I did to save you.” She said in a hushed voice; Set just listened quietly.

“I just want… Set, in case they somehow separate us please don’t do anything against it, I’ll come up with something and-“, he interrupted her stammering with a kiss. For a moment he just drew her close and first kissed her gently, then more passionate until she uttered a small sigh and he parted from her.

    “I already know, Dr. Nemon told me. But don’t worry, this time I will protect  _you_.” He said and caressed her waist. Then his look turned grouchy. “Is it really going to be  _five_  whole cycles?” The Irken whined and she snickered.

   “Well, maybe we’re lucky and it’s just four.” She replied and pulled up the blanket to hide her grin when he groaned annoyed.

 

 _9 hours later – Officer’s quarters,_  Rebellion _– 25 days and 5 hours since abduction_

When her Chronometer’s alarm went off she was already awake for a few minutes. Sje quickly turned it off and continued to observe Set. He was still fast asleep but his eyes were moving rapidly behind his eyelids. Jenna felt a grin, apparently she had been right. Through deactivating the Codes his subconsciousness wasn’t controlled by them anymore and thus he was able to dream.

When he started to mutter in his slumber she had to muffle a chuckle in the blanket but when she looked back up she met the glare of two crimson slits staring at her both confused but also highly irritated.

    “Are you laughing at me?” the Irken growled and rolled around. Jenna squeaked startled and was pulled onto his chest as he rolled over on his back.

    “No I’m not!” Jenna was quick to squeal but too late, he didn’t believe her one bit. Set snorted angrily and nestled his face into the crook of her neck to bite her and leave a dark hickey on her skin.

    “I'll show you not to laugh at me!” he rounded and worked his way down her upper body.

    “Set… what did I tell you  _yesterday_?” she scolded him and he stopped immediately. His growl got louder and he slid back up, his antennae hanging down his head listlessly.

    “And how often do you have this…  _cycle_  of yours?” he asked bugged and she gave him a lopsided sneer.

    “Every three to four weeks give or take.” She answered and he blinked slowly.

    “What’s a week?”

    “Seven days.”

She saw him calculating briefly and then snapping his eyes open and raising his antennae in shock.

    “Excuse me, this  _often_!? I thought this would happen… I don’t know, two times in one  _stellar_ -cycle!” he protested indignant and sank back with a groan. Now Jenna indeed laughed at him but kissed him gently.

    “Welp, this way I make sure to at least get a break from your daily assaults once in a while!” Jenna sneered. The Irken hissed to himself while she stood up to get ready for the day. When she was done she lay down next to him again and stroked over his arm.

“Do you wanna know why I was laughing just then?” she asked softly and he snarled.

    “No!” he hissed sulkily, making her roll her eyes.

    “You were dreaming.” She said nonetheless and now he did look at her.

    “Really? But… I don’t remember anything at all.” He muttered disappointed but she nodded.

    “Oh yes, you even talked in your sleep. That’s why I was laughing. You didn’t say anything in particular and just babbled but it was cute.” She giggled again when he bared his sharp teeth at her.

Jenna stood up, shoving the Chronometer into her pocket. “I gotta go, see you later.” she said and bent down to kiss his forehead.

    “Later…” Set sighed and stretched lazily.  
  


On her way to the MedBay she was greeted by many of the crew members and had to stop multiple times to answer all sorts of curious questions about the mysterious recluse or because so many wanted to thank her for destroying Lenka’s space station because some of their family members had been stuck on the besieged planet, and she couldn’t help but feeling pretty proud from all the praises. But most of all she was relieved that apparently nobody was loathing her anymore for bringing an Irken invader on board. And it dawned on her that Car was responsible for that, too, since some of the conversations quickly turned into a direction that made Jenna’s cheeks flush and she quickly tried to change the subject whenever it happened. From what Jenna could tell Car must’ve had been telling quite the cheesy love-story resolving around her fights in the arena and Set rescuing her from the Tallest themselves.

The MedBay was already buzzing when she finally arrived. Nearly the whole crew had to be checked through before their arrival on the home planet to prevent illnesses from spreading. Soon she was up to her neck in work and did what she could to help Nemon and the other assistants who also had their hands full. She felt good and the work took her mind off of what might await her in the rebel base.

The hours passed and suddenly it got hectic on the station. A female Ilenian was carried into the MedBay, Jenna recognized her by the brighter eyes and the slimmer, fine-boned stature towards the male Ilenians; moreover she was wearing a colorful dress and not one of the black overalls. Her belly was round like a beach ball and even without having studied Ilenian physiology Jenna could easily tell that she was pregnant, and about to give birth any second now, judging by her pain-contorted face.

Nemon immediately prepared one of the stretchers in the back part of the station and waved at the techs supporting the woman to place her on it. He was talking calmly to her in a dark, fluent language and she answered strained. Jenna followed Reliat on his command and helped him gather some tools.

Back again they arranged the tools on a tray next to Nemon who was pressing his hands on the woman’s bare belly with his brows deeply furrowed.

    “It’s too early, the shell hasn’t been fully absorbed yet! Reliat, administer one unit of painkillers; Car, you’re preparing the waterbath. Jenna…” he gave her an inquiring look. “I’d like you to help me deliver the baby, you’re hands are small enough. I understand if you don’t…” – “Just tell me what to do.” She interrupted him with a smile and sank down on a chair next to him. The Chief Medical Officer shot her a pleased smile and handed her a pair of long gloves.

    “Very well; inside the womb Ilenian fetuses are surrounded by a protective hard-shelled egg just before they are born, similar to Djelb, but instead of laying these eggs the shell gets gradually absorbed the closer the date of birth gets. This way you can estimate the exact date of birth, because there are great individual differences that can vary from days to months even. But when the mother goes into labour with the shell not completely absorbed it can prove dangerous for both mother and child. We will have to crack it open and remove the pieces of shell first before we can deliver the child.”

They proceeded with utmost caution and worked slowly even though the contractions were coming more and more frequently already. Reliat had radioed the father and now he stood beside his wife, soothingly talking to her in Ileni. Apart from her ragged, whistling breath she didn’t make a sound and just stared at Jenna the whole time. She barely noticed any of that, she was too focused on assisting Nemon in freeing the unborn from its protective shell.

Then everything went down at once: the last piece of shell was removed and a tiny, rust-brown being saw the light of the MedBay. Four big and round eyes slowly opened and stared right into Jenna’s. The small Ilenian hiccupped and then smiled at her with a cooing sound. Jenna’s eyes were wide open, she never had witnessed a birth before, and certainly no alien birth, and was awestricken with fascination. Nemon wrapped the little guy into a sterile blanket and placed him into her arms.

    “Give him to his mother. He is strong and healthy.” He said softly and she carefully stood up to lay the little tot onto his mother’s sweat-drenched chest. She looked up to her, smiling relieved, and then said something to her partner.

    “She wants to thank you. It’s a good omen when the baby smiles at the one who brought it into this world. You’re blessed with good fortune, Jenna, thank you so much!” he translated and couldn’t stop grinning. Jenna smiled and squeezed the woman’s hand.

    “He’s beautiful. Does he have a name yet?” she asked moved and the mother nodded.

    “He name Tenan, meaning ‘Touched by Luck’. I thank you much.” She replied and sank back on the stretcher with an exhausted sigh.

Nemon got up and they left the little family to themselves.

    “I’m very proud of you… I had hoped he would come when we’re already back at the base, but since he’s so healthy I don’t have any concerns. She named him after you by the way.” He added and Jenna stopped in her steps perplexed.

    “What do you mean?” she asked confused and he eyed her with a look that was hard to read.

    “Many here think that you might be more than just a human who managed to survive the Tallest’s arena, to single-handedly destroy an Irken space station and to control the mightiest Irken invader with nothing more than her willpower. They say you’re a lucky sign, a  _harbinger_ even. That’s why Weela named her son like this, because he was touched by you.” He said quietly and Jenna scrunched up her nose. She never really believed in the supernatural and much less omens and harbingers. And she didn’t like the idea of being seen as a heavenly sign by everyone. She had gone through too much blood and pain for this.

    “But that’s nonsense, Nemon. The only thing I ever did was trying to survive.” She interposed and he nodded.

    “I don’t believe in any of this as well. My civilization is now five hundred thousand stellar cycles old and up to now we still haven’t found any definite evidence for our gods. But I do believe in the weight that others will give this aura. It could prove useful for you when so many consider you to be a good omen and something bringing luck to people. And besides, it really takes a lot of luck to survive what you’ve been through.” He said and went to tend to the other patients again.

Jenna took a glimpse over her shoulder and looked at Weela and her son. She was reminded of what Feorn had said to her last… that she had brought the light back to him. Had she really just imagined his voice in the Cockpit? But she was already torn from her thoughts by more crew members who required her attention.        

 

After another hour the Commander’s announcement sounded from the speakers: they had arrived! Everyone was asked to attend the assembly in the hangar for a speech of their leader.

Jenna accompanied Car and Reliat and kept looking for Set in the vast hangar. Nervously she fumbled around with the buckle of her armor-belt she was now allowed to wear again after her services. But then she spotted him, he was hulking up between the techs like a tree and she felt a relieved smile on her face. The ground crew had erected some sort of stage with a podium at the back end of the hangar and just now the giant loading hatch opened to let in the Admiral’s escort.

The Supreme Commander, the Admiral, was a relative small Vort with leery eyes and even more tanned by sun and wind than Tork whom he gave a nod when he approached the Admiral and snapped to attention. They exchanged a few words but were too far away that Jenna could have understood anything.

Then the leader of the Resistance stepped onto the stage and let his gaze wander over the crew. It didn’t take long for him to fix his glare on Set. Immediately he narrowed his eyes into small slits and stiffened.

    “Irken dog, step forward.” He barked and Jenna gritted her teeth in outrage when she looked over to Set. He returned the Admiral’s cold stare indifferent and slowly stepped out from between the techs who quickly made way for him. But even his jaw was clenched. Tantalizingly slow he walked over to the podium and stopped in front of it, his hands casually folded on his back. He didn’t really have to bend to look the Admiral into the eyes.

    “You’re standing before the leader of the Resistance, Admiral Xakahr, Irken scum; bow down!” a soldier of the Admiral’s guard snarled and his hand flew to the handle of his gun. Set turned his head towards him and the guard flinched so hard that Jenna knew exactly how Set must’ve looked at the Vort. But then he did indeed bow down slightly and Xakahr grinned widely.

    “I was told that your SIR unit was responsible for the death of our best assassin, who, by the way, has been a dear friend of mine. Yet this serious offence has gone unpunished until now, as well as your countless crimes against the free races you massacred and conquered, invader Set. Yes, I know exactly who you are, everyone knows!” he raised his hands and turned to both sides, including all of the attending crew members in his venting speech. “And yet no one has made an effort to bring you to justice for your gruesome cruelties! I think it’s high time we correct this mistake…” he growled and reached for his holster himself.

    “ _NO_!”

Jenna’s scream rang so loud and sudden through the silent hangar that the whole crowd flinched in start, even the Admiral. Only Set didn’t bat an eyelid – as a matter of prudence he had already pressed his antennae to his head before the Admiral had even finished his sentence. Jenna used this short moment to storm out of the crowd and interpose herself between Set and the Supreme Commander. He recoiled even more upon seeing this weird creature with the wild eyes that dared to interrupt him.

“If you dare to lay a finger on him…” she hissed and clenched her fists. She hadn’t activated her suit yet and this way Xakahr saw the Irken slave brand on her wrist, right underneath the metal band of the Resistance. His scared expression turned furious.

    “You  _dare_ to interrupt me?! Who are you that you dare…” he snarled but in this moment the burst green armor wrapped around her frame, still smeared with Irken blood. Now his eyes widened and he seemed to recognize her.

“ _You_ … Tork: is this supposed to be the alien who single-handedly destroyed Lenka’s space station?” he asked in disbelief and Tork could only nod. His gaze was inflexibly focused on Jenna, silently begging her not to do anything stupid in addition to what she’d done already.

She discarded her battle ready stance and bowed before the Admiral.

    “My name is Jenna Campbell, I’m a human from Earth and a sworn member of the Resistance. Invader Set is under my protection! I brought him aboard the  _Rebellion_ more than ten cycles ago and he hasn’t harmed  _anybody_ since then! In fact, he saved the life of one of the soldiers guarding him and destroyed his own SIR unit before it could do any more damage. I destroyed an Irken space station in order to save his life. And I would do it again…” she added and braced. Should Xakahr still try to kill Set despite everything she said she would have to be quick...

The Vortian Admiral looked from her to the Irken and back. Then he snorted angrily and gestured scornfully.

    “Tsk, an Irken that size hiding behind such an uncivilized,  _dirty_ alien isn’t worth the ammunition.” He boomed and Tork told them quite clearly through a jerk of his head that they were to wait in front of his quarter. Jenna shot him a furious glare as she stormed out the hangar, she was literally fuming with rage! This conceited tyrant could never have been a friend of Feorn! Tork was harsh but at least he was just and didn’t act up like this wannabe Napoleon!

When she had stomped down the hallway a good bit Set grabbed her arm. Jenna wheeled around and saw his stern look.

    “What?!” she asked, still angry.

    “Don’t you ever do that again!” he growled and his scowl got deeper. “Don’t put yourself in danger like that ever again just for me.”

She wanted to protest but he shook his head before she got the chance and firmly grabbed her arms. “Do you understand?” he added and she averted her gaze in anger, tears in her eyes.

    “I won’t let them kill you…” she whispered and swallowed, “and I won’t let them put you in one of those  _stupid_ cells again, either.”

Set smiled softly before he got serious again.

    “That doesn’t mean I’ll let you jump into the line of fire like that!” he replied and she laughed quietly.

    “Both of ya, with me.” Tork had followed them without a sound and he wasn’t looking all too happy. They went quiet immediately and followed the Commander to his private quarters.

The Vortian positioned himself in front of the window again and only turned around when the door had closed behind them.

“That was more than unwise of you, Jenna. And I don’t just mean your public humiliation of our highest leader.” He started and Jenna already wanted to retort something but Set agreed with Tork:

    “I agree completely, Commander. She gave the Admiral the perfect reason to lock me up.” He stated and she glared at him scandalized and aghast. Now he was stabbing her in the back? Tork nodded at her.

    “As long as he can use Set as leverage he can demand everything of you. Swearing the oath isn’t just meant to do  _you_  favors, Jenna. Especially not when the orders come from the highest authority. You’re now a soldier; Xakahr could lock Set up for as long as he wants and make you destroy thousands of stations without setting him free. To the Resistance it would only be beneficial if the Empire lost more border stations and ships.” He added dryly.

She was on the brink of screaming and could barely control herself not to raise her voice.

    “But that wouldn’t make him any better than the Tallest who made me fight in their arena for sports!” she revolted. An impotent fury came over her that she felt light-headed and her heartbeat was an almost painful pounding in her chest.

    “Is there any way to set things right again?” Set was just asking and Tork swayed his head from side to side, assessing.

    “She has the majority of the crew on her side but the rest of the Resistance now only knows her as a quick-tempered, dangerous alien protecting an even more dangerous Irken invader from his just punishment. I’m sure you can imagine how this is going to turn out.” He explained and Set grimaced.

Jenna had to hold onto the table, the fury in her swelled on and on and beads of sweat ran down her forehead. She felt sick and her muscles had started to twitch. Dazed she shook her head. Was that high blood pressure? But how?

    “And an official plea for forgiveness? I already feel sick at the mere thought of fawning upon this midget but I’d do it to ensure Jenna’s protection.”

The two of them kept debating it over but their voices sounded muffled as if her ears were stuffed with cotton. Something wasn’t right with her!

Scared she wanted to call out for Set but couldn’t hear her own voice, though they both turned around to her and an appalled expression distorted their faces. Jenna could see Set calling her name and reaching out for her while Tork jumped up grabbing his gun when her vision suddenly toppled over and she fell into the darkness.  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hooray for cute alien babys! Alos Xakahr might be kind of a dick... oh boi~ This sure is going to be interesting!


	58. Phantom

###  **\- 23 – Phantom**

_50 hours later – MedBay – Planet of the Resistance_

Jenna opened her eyes and blinked against the bright light. Confused she tried to remember why she was lying in the MedBay when she recalled fainting in Tork’s private quarters all of a sudden. Immediately she sat upright and looked around for Nemon. Yet the entire MedBay was deserted. Also it wasn’t quite the  _Rebellion_ ’s MedBay she had ended up in, but rather one unknown to her, far bigger than the one on the ship; most likely she was in a building on the planet’s surface. But this also meant that the crew had apparently already left the ship and she had no idea where Set was right now!

Alarmed she jumped off the stretcher and looked down the slack hospital gown reaching down to her knees and which was the only piece of clothing she was covered with. Someone had undressed her and she couldn’t see her clothes anywhere.

    “Fucking hell…” Cursing she ran through the room and opened every drawer and cabinet. In one of them she finally discovered her clothes but her armor-belt was still nowhere to be found. Barefooted she darted out of the MedBay and looked around. As she had guessed she was in a much vaster location than the one on the  _Rebellion_  and down both spacious hallways she saw more doors leading to wings like the one she just came out of. She assumed these wings were all managed by multiple doctors. Jenna thanked every higher power that she was able to read Vortian and took the hallway to her left that said “Exit”. Along with her belt her Chronometer was gone as well and after a few turns she slowed down more and more until she suddenly stopped completely. What the hell was she doing?

Running around aimlessly in an unknown surrounding hadn’t turned out well for her before!

Resigning she turned on her heel and shuffled back into the room she had woken up in. There she found a more than upset Nemon who immediately looked her over.

    “Heavens, Jenna, can’t you just be good and lie and wait until I come back for once?” He scolded her and sighed relieved right after his chiding when he realized she was alright.

    “I was looking for a bathroom.” She lied and he blinked surprised.

    “Oh… well…  _still_! I was worried about you, we all were.” Now he sounded appeased and Jenna was pleased with her little fib.

    “What happened? All I know is that I felt dizzy and fainted.” She asked him and his gaze grew concerned again.

    “You don’t remember anything? Understandable, to be honest, you were in a coma for two cycles.”

Jenna shot up aghast.

    “T-two whole cycles?! Oh my god… w- what did I-“ she demanded to know but Nemon pushed her onto the stretcher with gentle force and calmed her down.

    “It was the Pakrit. After Set carried you into the MedBay I immediately had your blood analyzed and put you into an artificial coma as a safety measure. It took us some time before we found out what had caused circulatory disturbance and we noticed something disturbing; apparently your liver digested the Pakrit’s components into metabolites that are small enough to traverse your blood-cerebral barrier and accumulate in certain areas of your cerebrum like plaques. Now, those plaques seemingly have a negative effect on your neural cells which could have actually triggered your… fit. Why it happened just now of all times I don’t know unfortunately, but I highly assume that, by now, there’re just too many plaques that have accumulated in your brain. You can't drink the Pakrit anymore! Another attack could most likely damage you severely. It was… alarming.” He added and she furrowed her brows.

    “In what way? What happened apart from that?” she pressed, now even more nervous. Nemon looked at her scrutinizing.

    “You really don’t remember a thing?”

She negated sincerely.

“I only know what Tork told me… a few seconds after you collapsed you came to and you  _screamed_. Yet you didn’t seem to be yourself, you incessantly cried out “Make it stop!” and you seemed to be in great pain. Three units of tranquilizers were necessary to put you down for good, what probably also caused you to be out for so long. Luckily no one was harmed.” He hesitated but that only alarmed her more.

    “Why  _harmed_? Nemon, what are you keeping from me?” she wanted to know distressed and he sighed quietly.

    “You… eventually you turned on Commander Tork and Set when they tried to calm you down. The Commander had the presence of mind to immediately call for reinforcements while Set had trouble keeping you down. We had to filter your blood to get the residual Pakrit out of your body and even after that you still had some left in you… we saw it in the way your eyes were glowing. One of my theories is that your anger from the incident with the Admiral and the resulting high blood pressure caused some of the plaques to detach and reenter your bloodstream. Before I put you into a coma you were talking to yourself, that you had to drink it all and something else we didn’t understand.”

She was frozen in shock. Ria had said this to her, she had ordered her to drink all of her Pakrit while she was dying. Jenna started to shake.

    “Nemon, I- I think I’m losing my mind.” She uttered and hat to choke a sob. He placed his hand soothingly on her shoulder and she told him about Feorn’s voice that she had heard though her fighter’s intercom and her reoccurring nightmares lately. Nemon listened silently and squeezed her shoulder when she was done.

    “You’ve just been through a lot the last cycles, not to mention since your abduction. It is only natural that your body and mind revolt against it. It… I’m sorry, but that wasn’t all that  _happened_ while you were out.” He admitted and needed a second to avert his gaze, his other hand clenched into a fist. Jenna’s heart skipped a painful beat.

    “Nemon? W- what are you trying to… where is Set?” she breathed and now he had to grab her arms to keep her from jumping off the stretcher.

    “Please, calm down, he’s alright!” he sighed heavily. “I explained to Set what the Pakrit had done to you and that you could take damage from drinking it again. He immediately realized what that would mean for you. Without the Pakrit you won’t be able to survive another fight like the one with Lenka. And… this is why he is swearing the oath himself right now.” He concluded quietly and Jenna paled.

    “With… with what kind of favor?” she asked toneless and Nemon nodded slowly.

    “He’s asking for amnesty.” On her relieved smile he shook his head with a sad look. “He’s asking for amnesty for  _you_.” Nemon growled when she just stared at him confused. “Xakahr has gone mad! He wanted to punish _you_  in Set’s stead because you disobeyed Tork’s orders and due to saving Set instead of killing him you now pose a threat to the Resistance. As his former slave you are under suspicion of being brainwashed into sympathizing with the Irken Empire. It would seem that all his power and authority eventually got to his head! It’s not about toppling the Empire anymore, now he wants his own Empire! That fool…”

    “And what’s going to happen to Set?” she asked anxiously.

    “Well, he’ll have to fight, a lot actually, but I’m not worried about him. I’m worried about  _you_. If Xakahr has decided that you’re a threat to him he will try to do everything to get rid of you if you don’t finally learn how to sit tight for once and not always protest against everything you don’t agree with like a hotheaded youngster!” He looked at her beseechingly and she nodded quickly.

    “Nemon, it's not like I want to be this impulsive! But I can’t just stand around and let…”

    “Set is a tough guy, he is probably used to worse than what you can think of. And he wants to protect you. You can’t imagine how much it pains him what he has done to you. With every day he gets more and more accustomed to his new emotions and the more it dawns on him what he was actually doing in the name of his beloved Empire.”

She nodded.

    “I know… he almost had a breakdown over it. Alright, I’ll try to stay out of everything and focus on working on your station.” She said obedient and Nemon nodded sternly.

He sent for Car so she could take Jenna to her new quarters and gave her the armor back and her Chronometer.

Fortunately her new accommodation was close to the MedBay and they had even agreed to letting Set stay inside her quarters as well, as Car told her on the way; of course that was only a convenient way to have a better eye on both of them. At least it was a whole lot bigger than the Officer’s quarters on the  _Rebellion_.

While she walked through the room to take a look around Car sat down on the bed; she had wangled a few of the black overalls for Jenna that, surprisingly enough, even fit her save for a few weird folds that stayed on her calves, probably because the suits were actually made for the bent legs of a Vortian.

    “You really have some stupid luck, Jenna. Why do you always have to be so damn impulsive?” the Vortian commented bluntly and got an annoyed grunt back from her friend.

    “ _You’re_  one to talk… what the hell would you’ve done when they’d pointed that gun to Reliat’s head, hm? I don’t think  _you’re_  the kind of person that would just watch calmly!” she shot back, sank on the bed next to her and ran her hands through her hair.

Car didn’t return anything at this and just shrugged.

“I feel like I’m back on the  _Massive_ … except that now Set and I both are on the ropes and I’m not even allowed to fight against it!” she continued and received a punch to her arm. “Ow!” she uttered surprised and looked over to Car who gave her an angry glare back herself.

    “Do you actually think that I’m okay with this? My father is beside himself with anger! He’d love to shove us all back on the Rebellion and leave… but Xakahr announced a war council now of all times; Set was supposed to attend too. Don’t worry, the oath protects him and my father would never let anything happen to his crew. And you two belong to our crew now.” She reassured Jenna immediately when she looked up in shock.

The human snorted.

    “And what about  _my_  oath?! That doesn’t count jack now that I can't use the Pakrit anymore, does it?” she hissed but the Vort gently placed a hand on her back.

    “You were probably already dead if you hadn’t made it. Many in the crew respect you for what you did to save the life of that Irken and they'd gotten really angry if Xakahr had just shot you on the spot. Moreover… I don’t think Xakahr will stay Admiral for that much longer.” She added under her breath and now Jenna sat upright.

    “What do you mean? Do you think… someone might try a coup?” she asked and again her friend just shrugged.

    “Who knows; but one of the first things I was taught is that haughty Vortians don’t live all that long.” She said darkly and suddenly Jenna didn’t feel like pressing her any further.

    “I’m sorry I attacked your dad.” She apologized after a while. “I… I don’t remember anything.” She said rueful and Car laughed out loudly.

    “You scared him pretty good, but at least that Irken of yours proved useful for once when he kept you from dismantling my father. Must’ve been really creepy with your eyes glowing like that.” She replied and Jenna flinched guilty.  
  


They left her quarters, heading to one of the mess halls in the MedBay’s living complex to grab something to eat. Car explained to her that Nemon arranged for her to get actually paid for her work in the MedBay and handed her a small metal chip-card, similar to the one Set had given her back on the camping planet.

    “It’s really not much but then again no one in the Resistance has much money.” The Vortian commented and they looked for a free table. Although Jenna always enjoyed the canteen on the  _Rebellion_  this one felt overcrowded to her and she would’ve preferred to be by herself. And they didn’t stay undisturbed for long; only after a few minutes a bunch of curious aliens came around to bombard her with questions. She tried to stay friendly and not let their questions bother her too much but the more and more private getting questions ticked her off increasingly.

When her Chronometer started ringing she jumped up relieved and left the hall quickly. Car followed her without any trouble, her back-bent legs made her pretty fast.

It was Tork who radioed her and she let Car lead her to his office. For this they left the giant complex of the MedBay and once they were outside Jenna first of stopped, gaping upon seeing the alien environment for the first time.

The rebel’s base matched a city, the dimensions of the buildings alone made clear that she was indeed on an alien planet but that was nothing compared to the masses of aliens staying on it. There had to be a good ten thousand walking around the different complexes, not counting those inside.

The planet of the Resistance was cold, it reminded her of the frosty tundra regions of Earth. There were near to no plants between the giant buildings, of which the most part was stuck inside the ground, and the few she saw were only reaching up to her knees.

The planet orbited a binary system, which meant that there were two suns up in the grey sky; twin stars, circling each other and tinging the planet in a cold, blueish light due to their great distance. As they walked past the other buildings Jenna examined the countless rebels, bustling about, most of them armed and looking utterly wary and compared to the  _Rebellion_ there were even more races she had never seen before.

The command center with the Officer’s quarters was located slightly outside the busy center right in front of the airfield and the enormous underground hangars from which two were the size of Central Park to shelter both the  _Rebellion_  and the  _Vengeance_ , the Resistance’s flagship under Xakahr’s command.

She was only allowed to enter with visible reluctance even though Car was with her and she recognized some of the guards from Xakahr’s speech and had to pull herself together to not stare them down angrily. When the door to Tork’s office opened she was confused for a moment spotting Set standing next to the Commander and a few of the guards from the  _Rebellion_ ’s Command Bridge. It was dark inside and the window blinds had been lowered halfway, giving the whole situation even more of a spy movie flair.

The Commander stood resting against his desk and studied a stellar map with thoughtful eyes that was projected into the room by a floating orb. Just now Set pointed at a group of glowing dots.

    “Commander?” she started and Tork nodded greeting. Set shot her a short, relieved glimpse and she saw how hard it was for him to not walk towards her immediately. He wasn’t wearing the splints on his right arm anymore, apparently it had healed over the two cycles she had been out.

    “Jenna, good to have you back. I want to get straight to the point: Xakahr wants to attack the  _Massive_.” Tork interrupted their exchange of glances and she flinched.

    “Do you mean… just right into the armada? T- that’s suicide!” she called out horrified and Tork gave an amused snort, even the guards laughed quietly.

    “Congratulations, you’ve got it. And now take a wild guess who’s supposed to lead the assault next to Xakahr and my humble self…” he added grimly and her heart stopped for another painful moment.

    “No… no, that- Set don’t do this!” she groaned and felt like simply sitting down on the floor. Car wrapped an arm around her shoulder while Set shook his head with determination.

    “I have to. And not only because the Admiral is literally forcing me; I  _want_  to destroy them for everything they did to you and me. I don’t like the plan but now is our best chance. They won’t expect a direct attack.” He replied sober and seemed to ignore her desperate gaze.

    “Tork, that is downright madness! Even if you manage to surprise them they will regroup in no time and slaughter each and every one of you; they’re just too many! And  _you_  know that!” the last bit was addressed to Set along with an angry glare but he avoided her eyes.

The Vortian Commander made a fierce face.

    “I don’t like this one bit myself Jenna and believe me, I would’ve loved to have you on board, brimmed with Pakrit… but Nemon briefed me about your situation and what could happen if you take the stuff again and that is one risk I can’t take. Not now.” He added under his breath and she cocked a brow.

    “What’s that supposed to mean? What do you mean ‘not now’? Well maybe  _I_  want to take this risk!” she protested but felt Car’s grasp tighten at the same time and thought it was better to shut up now. “I have a score to settle with those monsters myself, and you know that too!” she hissed, turned on her heel and flounced out of the office.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You gotta lay off the Pakrit, Jenna! Your ass is getting crazy!  
> Welp, there you have it folks, the next lunatic tyrant is just around the next corner these days o.o That's actually a nice mental imagine, having Xakahr punched into the ground by the Tallest~
> 
> see ya next week!!


	59. Phantom - Pt. 2

###  **\- 23 – Phantom**

#### Part 2

  
_Half an hour later - Wasteland - Planet of the Resistance_

  
Jenna was jogging. Actually she hated running and jogging for that matter but all that anger in her guts drove her like an engine. Her boots raised dry earth and withered grasses as she trotted over the parched, cold plain. Her broken suit crunched quietly with every step, the cold air was burning in her lungs and her slowly healing ribs ached dully with every bounce but she kept running anyways.

That is until the ground suddenly just ended. Annoyed she came to a sliding stop at the ledge of the chasm and peeked into the depth. The ravine was multiple hundred meters deep and blueish wafts of mist wavered over the ground like spirits of the dead. What a bleak, desolated place.

Short of breath she sank to the ground and swung her legs over the edge. Silent she watched the two suns slowly approaching the horizon, tinging the sky in a deep violet which gradually turned into a vibrant red. The human smiled in the light of this sight.

She wasn’t afraid of falling down the cliff, she still had her armor and maybe it would be a lot more interesting down there than up here on the surface.

Bit by bit Jenna’s rage faded, but instead the worry came back. The Tallest certainly wouldn’t show any mercy and definitely wouldn’t make any prisoners this time. Xakahr for one they’d probably keep alive long enough to tell them where the rebel-base was hidden. But would they kill Set right away? Or would they make him into a food drone like Ria back then?

She felt miserable and wrapped her arms around one knee to rest her chin on it. At least it would appear that the Earth wouldn’t get destroyed for now if the Empire concentrated on obliterating the Resistance first and foremost.

    “Yay…” she muttered sarcastic and sighed, her breath a white cloud.

Suddenly she felt something behind her, it was like a flash behind her eyes and her head snapped around. Set was standing behind her.

“Hey…” she uttered quietly and looked up to him. The Irken sank down next to her and looked into the sinking suns, his crimson eyes glowing in the light. Quiet they sat together for a whole while and didn’t move. Then she felt his hand sliding over hers and she sighed again as she interlaced her fingers with the three of his.

“I’m sorry I stormed off like that… but I was just so-“

    “I know… I felt the same.” Set muttered and stroked over his antennae.

    “You’re leaving me alone  _again_ … and yet I only just got you back. And I can’t even go with you.” The unspoken reproach in her voice made him flinch. The first time he had left her by herself because of a mission she got killed.

    “Tork has a plan and it’s not even that bad. I… he doesn’t want me to talk to you about it but you shouldn’t worry.”

She nodded well-behaved and leaned against him until he wrapped one arm around her. His free hand reached into a pocket of his overall and he pulled out her crumpled pack of cigarettes, now a lot less full. She couldn’t hide a grin.

    “So  _you_ took them! I was wondering where those might have ended up in all this confusion.” She nagged at him and took one thankfully. Set slowly exhaled the smoke and blew circles.

Only now Jenna realized that he was also wearing one of the uniform black overalls and she made a sad face. “I miss your old uniform… you looked so much more dashing in it than in this crap.” She groused, simply to give vent to her anger. Set chuckled, he must’ve been thinking the same thing. Then something seemed to come to his mind and he reached into another pocket.

Jenna noticed the glistening from the corner of her eye and her mouth formed a surprised  _Oh_ when Set showed her the necklace he had brought back for her after his mission and which she had wanted to throw away on the  _Rebellion_. She had totally forgotten all about it!

    “I think I know why you kept it hidden in your backpack but… I want you to wear it.” He said quietly and she nodded quickly and put the necklace on. She was actually glad to have it back and it would remind her of Set every time she looked at it. He looked down at her and watched how her brown hair gained its slightly red halo in the sunset, and the way the Dilamite crystal was casting a faint glow on her skin, charged by the warmth of her body. How tiny she was… and yet she had more courage and strength than many an invader taller than her.

Again he felt this strong affection to her, this pleasant feeling he’d get from simply watching her like that. It still agonized him that he had afflicted so much pain and sorrow on her and deep inside his mind he still wasn’t really convinced that she had truly forgiven him yet. But he  _loved_ her. The more he repeated this phrase in his head the more sense it made and the more determined he was to fulfil the task Tork had assigned to him in order to protect her. The mere thought about his success filled him with satisfaction.

    “Set, I…” she suddenly started and he looked down on her expectantly. Jenna sighed and raised herself on her knees to get to his face and kiss him passionately. He returned the kiss a bit surprised and had to steady himself with one hand to not get knocked down by her force. Her lips and tongue tasted bitter from the tobacco but that didn’t make them any less sweet. When they parted they were both breathing heavily, Jenna took his face into her tiny hands and palmed over his antennae which had his tall frame shaking. “Promise me you come back in one piece, okay?” she pleaded and he nodded with a smile.

    “Promise. And you promise me to listen to Nemon and don’t get into any trouble while I’m gone, alright? If you’re a good girl I’ll make you a new suit.” He replied somewhat sternly and she nodded eagerly.

    “When do you have to leave?” she asked nervously, and his gaze turned deploring.

    “Tomorrow already…” he admitted contrite and she flinched.

    “Oh.” Jenna did quietly and nestled up to him. “Well… I guess it really is the best moment. And this time you say  _goodbye_ to me before you leave!” she added sharply and he grinned before his look got miffed again.

    “Well I would have seen you off  _appropriately_  but your  _timing_  sucks.” He mocked her and she made a dashed face.

    “ _Well_ … I could see  _you_  off as well.” She suddenly purred and Set’s grin vanished to make way for a staggered expression. “Oh!” he just sounded and grinned wolfishly at her. “That sounds…  _tempting_.”

She snickered and they fell silent again.

    “Set?” she asked into the silence. “Do you sometimes have the feeling… that your Pak might be more than a mere piece of tech grown together with your body?”

He cocked a brow.

    “What do you mean?” he sounded more curious than confused.

She shrugged.

    “Well… that it isn’t just a lifeless piece of metal but an organism, something  _alive_.” She continued and he snorted.

    “I’d know if something like that was attached to my back, don’t you think? How do you come up with ideas like that?”

She raised her hands doubtfully.

    “Zim told me that it’s the Paks that control you and not just the Codes, moreover they can’t get hacked, save for those Control Brains. What are they, actually?”

Now it was up to Set to shrug.

    “The decide over who becomes an invader and who not; they pronounce judgment and can relieve invaders of their rank, demote them to drones and erase their Pak’s memory.” He explained but she shook her head.

    “I get all that, but what  _are_  they? Computers? Paks? Irkens? Or are they really just  _brains_?” she chased it up impatiently and he frowned.

    “I… well they are big and round… yes, actually they look like Paks but they talk.” He admitted and her eyes widened.

    “Like the computer on your ship?” she wanted to know but he hesitated.

    “No… you didn’t have to give them orders, they did everything autonomously. I think the Tallest are just present for the demotions and they accept the judgment of the Control Brains…” he mumbled thoughtfully and shot her an uncertain glimpse. Contented Jenna crossed her arms in front of her chest.

    “And where do you get your Paks then? Who builds them?”

    “Every Irken smeet* gets a Pak after hatching.” He just said.

    “And who  _builds_ them?”

He shook his head and shrugged gruffly. Jenna snorted; so nobody knew exactly just  _what_ the Paks were and where they came from. Maybe they could catch another Irken invader and run tests on their Pak before it destroyed itself. “We’d need a guinea pig…” she murmured lost in thoughts. Set perked up his antennae.

    “What the hell is a guinea pig?” he asked baffled and she laughed.

    “Oh, that was just an expression. Guinea pigs are cute little animals with fluffy fur.”

It got darker and even colder. With a tremble Jenna stood up and raised her shoulders against the freezing wind.

“We should head back…” she said quietly as Set got up on his feet as well.

They walked slowly on the way back, side by side and tried to take as much time as they could for their return to the base. When they arrived at the rebel city some of them were already busy in the pale light of the floodlights with preparing the  _Vengeance_ for the attack. Although everyone was pretty occupied they still had enough time to cast glances at the odd couple, most of them not very friendly. Jenna ignored them pretty indifferent as she noted; she was used to those from the  _Rebellion_  after rescuing Set. And besides: a few crew members of the  _Rebellion_  soon came up to them to see Set off and to give Jenna a sympathetic smile whereat she blinked in surprise before she remembered that Car had taken care of telling the crew members about her actual relationship with Set. That was why she didn’t mind when Set put a hand on her shoulder to pull her closer to him.

The pilots they met seemed more excited than really concerned and were visibly looking forward to the coming fight. When Jenna thought about the fact that she might not see all of them again she felt tears in her eyes which she quickly squinted away.

Once they were back in her quarter Jenna let her broken suit disappear inside the belt and stroked over her arms to chase the cold out of her bones since she was only wearing a shirt and leggings. She had refused to put on one of the overalls as long as she had still clothes of her own.

Not a second later two big, strong hands wrapped around her arms and gave them a gentle rub. Carefully Set massaged her shoulders and her nape and she sank against him with a tired sigh. She hadn’t noticed how much tension her body had built up from lying around for two days. After a while he picked her up and carried her over to the bed. Jenna raised one hand to reach his antennae and was already about to fumble with his overall but he grabbed her hand with gentle firmness and shook his head.

    “I think I just want to lie here with you in my arm and memorize every centimeter of you before I have to leave…” he rounded huskily and sank down with her on the bed. Jenna snuggled up against him and tenderly stroked over his cheek and antennae. Set briefly closed his eyes and relished in the feeling. When he slowly opened them again she felt a smile on her lips; never before had his eyes appeared so beautiful to her like now and she couldn’t help but kiss him and huddle even closer.

“You’re mine…” he murmured under her lips and let his hand run over the arch of her back.

    “And you’re  _mine_.” She returned under her breath and the Irk widened his eyes before he grinned at her.

    “I guess I am.” He replied just as quiet and gently bit her nose.

    “Let’s build a house.” She suddenly said and he snorted amused.

    “What?” Set asked confused and she sat up and rolled him over on his back to straddle and bend over him and catch his hands in her own.

    “When all of this is over. Let’s find a secret planet with a nice,  _tropical_ climate and a whole bunch of water and then we build a house and live peacefully together until we’re old and grumpy… grumpier in your case.” She sputtered and giggled when he let his tongue dance over her neck.

    “Alright, alright… if you want it so badly I’ll build you a house you crazy human.” He whispered and kissed her softly. Jenna reached for her backpack beside the bed and rummaged through it. When she didn’t find what she was looking for she got anxious and searched through the other pockets. Still nothing.

    “Where is my…” she just asked as Set let her iPod dangle in front of her face.

    “Looking for this?” he asked amused and she huffed.

    “Exactly, you common thief!” but she was snickering and turned it on relieved. Surprised she noticed that the battery was fully charged.

    “Oh, no big deal I charged it with my Pak when you were out.” Set mentioned on the side and grinned at her. She rolled her eyes and put one of the plugs into her ear. A bit indecisive she looked at Set; Feorn with his big ears haven’t had any trouble using these things but she had no idea how that was supposed to work with an Irken. Finally she smiled and simply wrapped the cable with the earbud around his antenna. Set didn’t seem all that enthusiastic about it but then he heard the music play and smiled back at her.

“I already miss that…” he sighed and pulled her down on his chest again. Jenna sang quietly to herself; they tried to stay awake as long as possible but eventually they fell asleep entangled.    

   
  


Set was already awake but he didn’t stir. The biological clock of his Pak told him that he had still some time before he would leave. He was looking down on Jenna, his head resting in one hand and watched how her eyes were moving behind the closed lids. As if she was seeing something in her sleep. He wanted to touch her, but since she was sleeping so peacefully he didn’t want to wake her up. In his mind he repeated the plan Tork had devised for their mission over and over. It would get pretty dangerous and even more chaotic, and all his instincts as an elite soldier were protesting against it. Still he wouldn’t back off from successfully completing the task assigned to him, he would never reject a command.

Set flinched as this expression went that easily through his head. Even though his Codes were all gone his strict training wasn’t that easy to discard. He wondered whether Jenna would ask him if he even wanted to do this if he had told her about the real mission. But because of that he hadn’t…

    “Set?”

His eyes opened completely, they had narrowed during his pondering. Jenna looked at him curious, a slightly drowsy smile on her lips. Slowly he bent down to her to kiss her, embracing the small frame that was still giving off the heat of sleep and felt his determination to leave crumbling as her arms wrapped around his neck so she could pull him even closer. His desire stirred and he cursed her cycle so fiercely in his mind that he emitted a frustrated hiss involuntarily.

Jenna snorted quietly and gently stroked his antennae.

“I know… same here…” she breathed apologetic, then she parted from him and her eyes looked thoughtfully. “When do you have to leave?” she asked and he blinked confused.

    “Hm, something like a Ti, why…” but before he could finish his sentence she was already at his antennae, rubbing them, giving them gentle pulls and kissed him on his open mouth. His startled sound was turned into a dull moan when her touches caused a real firework in his brain. Shortly after waking up his sensory organs were the most sensitive and thus it didn’t take long until his erection sprung from its sheath, throbbing almost painfully, pressing against her thigh. He grabbed her, rubbing the tips of her breasts between his fingers till she moaned herself, but it quickly dawned on him that he was the main attraction here.

Jenna bobbed up and shoved him away until Set was forced to turn around on his back. In the split of a second she was over him, bracing on the mattress and bent over him to take the black stalks into her mouth. The Irk bit his lip yet he couldn’t keep a loud sigh what Jenna commented with a dark laughter next to his antennae that made him tremble. Before he was able to get his bearing back she already reached down and closed her hand around his cock. Set felt his breath turning shallow and a pleasant dizzy when she slid down, pumping him, and her lips setting every centimeter of his stomach ablaze.

Suddenly she went down on him, kissing the hard tip and playfully licking it what caused another throaty moan and Set to reflexively bury his hand in her hair to keep her from stopping. But Jenna was far from stopping now. Tantalizingly slow she ran her tongue up and down his length, nibbling with her lips at the soft skin around the sheath in which his penis rested when not aroused and then she took him into her mouth. The tip alone was almost too big for her but she forced herself to take in more and let her tongue dance around him while she slowly sucked.

Set hissed hoarsely, squinching his eyes shut and quickly opening them again to watch her. His hand on her head pushed her down some more and when Jenna didn’t struggle but instead went a bit deeper he moaned unrestrained and sank back.

    “Jenna...” he gasped strained while her lips closed tighter around his cock, moving faster up and down. The hand in her hair clenched and she gave a little pained sound but didn’t stop sucking and stroking his erection until his breath was only a hot panting. She could already taste a bitter drop on her tongue and grabbed him tighter, her finger circling the base of his cock right at the warm sheath’s fold. Doing this she felt a small bulge just at the bottom and paused. Curious she gave it a rub and Set uttered a startled moan of a whole new intensity. Aghast Jenna raised her head, afraid she might’ve hurt him but the Irk just stared at her stunned.

    “Is everything alright?” she quickly asked and he nodded after a second of hesitation.

    “Yes… that was…” he furrowed his brows, “Hey, who told you to  _stop_?” he growled and pushed her back down, a blazing fire in his eyes and beads of sweat all over his body. Jenna just grinned and dealt the bump another firm stroke. Set threw his head back and gasped for air. “Oh you wretched little…” But he didn’t get any further because Jenna had already dipped her head back down and lapped over the apparently awfully sensible spot, stroking and pumping his dick again. At first Set froze but then he started to quiver, his long legs shook as her nails scratched the inside of his thigh. He was only hissing now; Jenna took him back into her mouth, rubbing the knob with her thumb. She sucked him hard and fast what was easier now that his cock was wet and he on the brink of getting off. Her fingers stroked and rubbed and suddenly he swelled inside her mouth and came. She had no time to flinch back. It tasted both sweet and bitter and it was so much that it ran down her chin no matter how hard she tried to press her lips together.

Jenna shot up and met Set’s gaze. He looked at her, biding, and she glared back challenging; but then disgust won and she jumped up to run into the bathroom and spit his load into a page of her sketchbook she’d torn out and threw it down the waste chute. She could hear Set laughing quietly and she had to grin herself while she cleaned herself.  
  


When she came back the Irken invader lay on his side, his head resting on one hand, watching her satisfied.

    “Great… now I don’t want to leave at all.” He groused played angry and she stuck out her tongue.

    “Stay then, I’d happen to know one or two more things you could do with that mouth.” She taunted back and his gaze grew a bit more gloomy.

    “You really don’t want me to leave, do you?” he murmured quietly and she shook her head crossing her arms.

    “It’s madness and you know that. But above all I fear that Xakahr might somehow use you as cannon-fodder just to get rid of you. And the thought that you sit inside a ship you don’t pilot yourself and it gets shot down…” she felt the lump in her throat and quickly lowered her gaze again. Jenna heard Set getting up and walking over to her with bare feet.

Then his hand grabbed under her chin and raised it gently but determined.

    “That already happened like a dozen times to me.” He just said and she gave him a disbelieving look. Set ejected the armor from his Pak and activated the bubble-like air-shield which her suit had as well and that had saved both their lives on the iced moon.

“The shield even works in space and moreover my Pak is equipped with thrusters which I can use to move around out there. I’ve been thrown out into space on so many missions now that this is really my last concern.” He explained to her but Jenna wasn’t reassured at all.

    “Okay, if that is your  _last_ concern I don’t even wanna know what your first is…” she sighed and hugged the tall Irk, huddled against him and drank in his scent. She smiled thinking about asking him to leave her one of his worn shirts but then she frowned since he didn’t have any. And a worn overall seemed rather gross.

    “I promised you to come back. So be good and don’t start any fights while I’m gone, okay?

    “Okay…”          

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapters like this make me happy~~  
> When will my alien husband return from war? *sniff*
> 
> * smeets: smeets is the term for young Irkens, mostly freshly hatched ones!


	60. Phantom - Pt. 3

###  **\- 23 – Phantom**

#### Part 3

 

The airfield was overcrowded and a general tension prevailed all around not least because of Set himself, who was towering every single one of the bystanders by at least one foot, battle ready in crimson and purple armor. Tork had been right about the majority of the rebels who were glaring at him just as hateful and warily as the  _Rebellion_ ’s crew not all that long ago. But at least the circumstance that those crew members were moving so carefree around the Irken invader ensured that no open conflict broke loose. Although Set seemed to ignore their glares and curses much better than Jenna, who couldn’t help but stare just as angrily at the gawkers whenever she’d catch them.

Just now they were headed to one of the transporters which was supposed to fly the soldiers towards the  _Vengeance_ , already waiting within the planet’s orbit, and Jenna was flashing her eyes at a Vort who had really dared to secretly spit out in front of them, when a loud shout startled her. She recognized Car’s voice and hurried through the crowd to find her friend. When she had managed to push through the aliens a small circle had already formed around the livid Vortian to keep the most possible distance to her.

    “What do you even want to do in that battle? You can’t even fight properly for crying out loud!” Car bellowed and Reliat raised his hands in defense, but he was looking angry for the first time.

    “Doctor Nemon has to stay here and no one else wanted to sign up as army doctor for this attack! Somebody has to go with them to help in case of need! You  _know_ that, Car.” He tried to reason with her but that was only driving her even more furious.

    “And  _you_  know very well that this is all just a fucking suicide mission! Even Jenna is afraid for Set and he is a damned Irken! What am  _I_  supposed to say? You’re a miserable shooter and even worse at close combat, you’ll  _die_ out there!”

She was close to tears, tears of anger and helplessness and Jenna quickly stepped at her side to calm her down. Reliat turned away insulted and muttered something not very friendly.

    “Car, stop it, noting will happen to Reliat, your father will watch over him.” She said quietly and put an arm around her shoulder but Car shook her off.

    “ _You’re_  one to talk, you were on that blasted ship yourself, you know best just how dangerous and cruel these monsters are, so don’t you even try to convince me of anything else!” With this she stormed away through the crowd and was gone. Reliat looked very uncertain all of a sudden and turned almost white underneath his brown stripes, his four eyes round with horror. Jenna sighed quietly and turned to him.

    “That was dumb of me…” he mumbled glum but Jenna placed a hand on his arm.

    “Maybe, but I can understand why you felt obliged to do it… I’d love to come with you but I guess I’d just be in the way, even as a field medic. Just watch yourself and don’t do anything heroic, okay?” she tried to cheer him up and he nodded, taking the medic-pack over his shoulder, and walked up the transporter’s ramp with heavy steps. But now Jenna herself was more worried than ever and turned around to Set, her hands folded in front of her chest, fingers hooking into each other nervously. He had observed the whole scene silently from the sideline and came closer now that the crowd was scattering again. Despite all the hostile rebels around them she huddled close to his body and beckoned him down to her with a finger so the tall invader knelt that she could whisper to him:

“Please watch over him… I couldn’t forgive myself if something happened to him. But if… if there’s the situation when it’s either… you or him…” Jenna broke off ashamed and Set cupped the back of her head with one big hand to rest his forehead against hers.

    “Got it… I will come back, Jenna, I promise.” He murmured under his breath and kissed her quickly before he stood upright again and loped up the ramp, his head raised high in pride and so naturally awe-inspiring that some of the other fighters turned around to him in stun and moved away to let the invader pass. She saw many of the pilots she knew, even some of the boys Set had asked about Feorn. She wished with all her heart that there was some way for her to go with them, her blood overflowing with Pakrit, a one-woman army so she could save them all. But thus she could only watch the transporters take off one by one, towards the giant ship waiting for them just outside the atmosphere, its shadow looming over the city like an ill-boding dragon.

Jenna’s breath left her shaking lips and she turned away as soon as the transporters were too small for her to see them. At least Nemon and Car were also staying on the planet so she wouldn’t be all alone, she thought melancholic as she took the path back to the MedBay complex.

She met Weela and her family in front of the main gate just as they left the building. Smiling she approached the three of them and asked how little Tenan was doing. The little one cooed at her, stretching out his scrawny arms for her until Weela would lay him into Jenna’s careful embrace. A bit shy she held the tiny being and looked fascinated into the four round eyes that gradually were getting the beautiful stripes of his parents. But suddenly Tenan screwed up his face, emitting a whine. Startled Jenna thought she had done something wrong. But then she lifted her gaze and saw the alien standing a few meters across from them, leaning against the wall. It was pitch-black and if it hadn’t been wearing one of the overalls that contrasted brighter against his dark skin she wouldn’t have been able to make out any contours of its frame. The shape of the tall being seemed to constantly shift and move, wafting like wisps of mist but she was able to notice that it had two sets of long, lean arms and a triangular shaped head like that of a snake, more like a cobra even. But the worst were the eyes. There were five of them, two pairs like those of Ilenians but a fifth one right on its forehead. They were of a green so bright and vibrant they seemed to glow like radioactive orbs. It stared over at her and Jenna felt as if it was looking right at her soul, reading her thoughts and turning them to the outside.

Somehow she managed to tear her eyes from it and gave the small Ilenian back to his mother who had now started to cry after all. The couple exchanged telling glimpses and looked over to the black, phantom-like alien before they hurried away but Jenna touched the father’s arm.

    “Who is that?” she whispered and sounded just as uneasy as she felt.

    “I don’t know… But you should watch out. He is a Zar’tak, they always mean trouble.”

Yet before she could press on they were already leaving. She shot a glance over her shoulder but the Zar’tak was gone, as if the earth had swallowed him. Still she looked around about a dozen times before she arrived at Nemon’s lab.

 

_A few hours later – MedBay – Planet of the Resistance – 28 days and 9 hours since abduction_

Jenna handed Nemon one of the laser scalpels and watched attentively how he performed the tiniest of cuts on the Vortian’s belly. It was her first surgery and she was accordingly fascinated and curious as she now cast her eyes to the monitor displaying the organs after Car had pushed the tiny robotic probe inside the hole. Her face was hard and determined and secretly Jenna was glad they’d sedated the patient completely; such a dark expression was the last you’d want to see when someone was fiddling with your vital organs.

Nemon was satisfied with Car’s steady hand and explained them more about Vortian anatomy. The human however was only listening with half an ear, she was still thinking about the Zar’tak. Something in the way that alien had been staring at her was more than troubling. Then she suddenly recalled that the assassin who had tried to kill Set with the gut-gorger still hadn’t been caught yet. But someone like the Zar'tak surely would’ve caught her attention on the ship! Or was he just an accessory to someone else entirely?

    “Hey!” Car snapped from the side and Jenna flinched caught. “Doctor Nemon just  _asked_ you something.” The Vort groused and she raised her hands apologetic and somewhat defensively since her friend was glaring at her quite angrily from behind her surgical mask.

    “S- sorry, I was just lost in thoughts. May I hear the question again?” she apologized and Nemon gave her a more quizzical than chiding look before he repeated his question.

    “Jenna, can you tell me how to differentiate a Vort’s spleen from their liver?”

Car’s glare got smug, apparently she seemed to think that Jenna couldn’t answer the question because she hadn’t been paying attention. Yet she only shot her an irritated glance herself and pointed at an organ on the screen.

    “This one here is the spleen; contrary to the liver it only has one big blood vessel per lobe while the liver gets sustained by a whole network of great arteries and veins which enables Vortians to break down toxins much quicker than any other life form. It can however be tricky to discern them since every Vort has them in a different spot in their body.” She recited and watched pleased how Car stared back at the screen with a sour face. Nemon’s smile only grew wider and he nodded.

    “Very good, you’re really learning fast! And know you’re going to tell me what’s  _bothering_ you, I do hope you’re not worrying about Set, still, are you?”

Car gave a faint hiss but Jenna overlooked her bad mood.

   “Well, yeah, but what worries me more is that the bastard who hid the gut-gorger in that cake still hasn’t been caught. I’m afraid he might try something like that again.” She admitted and Nemon nodded sternly at the monitor, his hands moving on their own.

    “Yes, I can imagine that much. But please don’t think the Commander has forgotten about that matter; on the contrary, he is livid that his guards still haven’t rooted him out. And don’t worry, nobody here would dare to attack an official member of the Resistance, and much less a little luminary like you at that.”

Car snorted scornfully at that.

   
  


After the surgery was done Jenna sought Car out in the storage room to confront her. Despite her own anger she was gentle, she already could tell why the Vortian was so pissed.

    “Hey, what was that all about?” she asked friendly and got an angry glimpse out of vermilion eyes narrowing at her. “Oh come on, Car, I know what’s going on. But why do you have to take it all out on me? Do you think I don’t know what this feels like? I almost lost Set three times already and each time it felt worse. So do you believe me when I say that I know how you feel and I just want to help you?” she tried on and suddenly Car spun around and fell round her neck.

    “Ooh, you stupid moron, don’t you understand anything? Every one of my people expects me to break up with Reliat so that I can follow into my father’s footsteps as a Vortian Commander! They all judge me and despise me for my relationship to him but they don’t have the balls to say it to my face because I’m the first Commander’s daughter yet I always see their looks. And now that  _idiot_ just throws his life away because he can’t stand their hatred anymore, my father’s at least. I’m just so angry he’d give up that easily! I don’t want to be Commander and become as cold and farouche as my father...”

She couldn’t say anything else because Jenna pried herself free and took a step back from her, her eyes narrowed in disbelief and slight contempt. Car looked at her confused, her thin lips trembling.

    “This is the stupidest bullshit I’ve ever heard you say.” Jenna said and shook her head, but then she took Car’s hand and they sat down on a stack of boxes. “Did you even listen to what you were saying? Your father doesn’t hate Reliat at all! Sure, he’s a bit wary when he sees him but that’s what fathers do, they  _care_  for their daughters and don’t want them to get hurt. And where the hell did you get the idea that he is cold or  _farouche_? In fact, he is very caring and understanding! When I brought Set aboard the  _Rebellion_  he didn’t cast me out or lock me in as he had announced. He let me explain and was insightful enough to make me prove that I was right about Set. He… he will watch over Reliat’s life, I’m sure about it and I bet he doesn’t want to force you to become Commander, otherwise he would’ve stopped your medical training long ago. Just because your own kind doesn’t approve your relationship to another species than your own doesn’t mean that your own father is resenting it. Also, Reliat would never go and end his life because of what others might say behind your back, he loves you too much for that. I just think he wants to prove himself to you, that he can be strong enough to protect you from everything. Besides, I told Set to keep an eye out for him.” She added with a smile and Car’s gleaming eyes widened in stun.

    “Y- you did?” she buried her face in her hands ashamed. “Ugh, I’m such an idiot.” It sounded muffled from behind them and Jenna chuckled.

    “It’s alright, I was angry at the entire Resistance as well when they called Set to this assault. You think it’s unfair… why him out of all people? Let the others fight, he has nothing to do with it. Even though that’s selfish.” She pointed out quietly and Car nodded.

    “Right… but at least your Irken  _can_  fight… I can fight, heck, even you could probably fight better than Reliat! He might be a mastermind in the operating room but apart from that?” she shook her head, “A complete  _klutz_ , he’d shoot himself.”

Still they both had to laugh. But then Jenna’s thoughts traveled back to the scary alien.

    “Car, what do you know about a  _Zar'tak_  in the Resistance?” she asked quietly and it must’ve been the shaking of her voice that made the Vortian furrow her brows.

    “Why do you ask? You didn’t insult one of those have you?”

    “There’s more than one?” Jenna sighedand suppressed a shudder with strain. “No, it’s just… after thetransporters had taken off I met Weela and her husband in front of the complex and then he stood behind me, out of nowhere, and he was  _staring_ at me. I really felt weak at the knees there.”

Car wanted to ask something when Nemon stuck his head through the door.

    “I hope you don’t plan on staying in there all day. We still have some patients left.” He chided them even though his eyes were soft as he spoke. Quickly they both jumped to their feet and hurried back into the lab.

Jenna almost recoiled when she saw who was waiting for them in the MedBay.

The Zar'tak turned his big head towards her and stared at out of big, bright green eyes that didn’t blink and were literally paralyzing her until Car poked her in the back and they got to get the tools Nemon needed. She felt the eerie glare lingering on the back of her head the entire time.

    “What is he doing here?! As if he heard us talking…” Jenna hissed under her breath and saw relieved that even Car looked a bit rattled now, so she wasn’t just imagining his creepy aura.

    “I… I don’t know! Until now none of them ever visited the MedBay; Nemon once told us that they actually don’t even need medical attention. I don’t want to alarm you but… has he ever been on your heels before today?”

Jenna paled, her ribs ached when she couldn’t keep back a trembling shaking her body.

    “What do you mean? Do you think he’s following me? Why?”

Nemon cleared his throat impatiently and they were quick to return to him.

Now she wished frantically Set had stayed with her. He would’ve kept the weird alien away from her with his presence alone but so all she could do was try to not lose her mind when she stood barely at arm’s length from the Zar'tak. The five scary eyes were still resting on her.

For a while there was a tensed silence that was only broken by the clatter of their tools and the noises of the life support machines.

Then multiple things happened at once; suddenly the light went out, Car, Jenna and Nemon wheeled around in start, there was a loud bang and out of nowhere a green glow lightened the dark room around Jenna. She turned around to it and saw the Zar'tak looming over her; the light was emitting from his eyes like headlights and he had rows and rows of teeth bared into a triumphing snarl, only seconds from jumping her. She gave a scream and recoiled, when the lights went back on again, glaring her.

Quickly she forced her blinded eyes open again, sure the attacker wouldn’t let this chance go unused, and only blinked at the ceiling. Confused and alarmed she looked around.

The Zar'tak was sitting on the stretcher again with his legs crossed and looked so harmless as if butter wouldn’t melt in his mouth. Car stood next to the door, her hand on the light-switch and Nemon had grabbed one of the laser scalpels, his glare wild and alert.

Had they seen the Zar'tak’s transformation as well? She stepped further away from the stretcher and kept her gaze fixed on the creature. The green eyes followed her attentively.

    “Is everyone alright? I heard a gunshot!” Nemon called out and Car and the other assistants in the room nodded scared; only Jenna stood there rooted to the spot, and was still staring at the alien. He didn’t say anything, didn’t make any sound and yet she was sure he was angry that he hadn’t gotten her.

A Vortian tech with yellow eyes and big safety goggles over his horns peeked into the room and looked around.

    “There was a power loss, apparently some of the electrical workers tried again to improve the power distribution in this sector. One of the fuses blew, sorry about the noise. I hope nobody was hurt running around in the darkness.” He said apologetic but Nemon put him off.

    “No, everyone is well, thank you. But something like that mustn’t repeat itself again. The machines might be all connected to the backup power supply but when the lights turn off during a surgery… just tell the electricians they should probably just install another generator, thank you very much.” He gave back and the Vort disappeared, after casting the Zar'tak a wary glimpse, it was clear that apparently nobody seemed to trust them all that much.

Jenna used the Vort’s interruption to disappear into the cramped room they used to disinfect before surgeries and braced herself heavily on the chromed sink. Her stomach was protesting and her heart racing away; that had been close. And maybe that wouldn’t cut it next time.  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm still trying to get concept art for the Zar'tak done but until then, just think of the spookiest creature you can imagine, and multiply it... by six!
> 
> Hope you guys have had a great weekend!!


	61. Plan B

###  **\- 24 Plan B -**

_Aboard the_ Vengeance _– 8 hours after departure_

Set gave a wary look around when he closed the canopy of the last fighter he had tended to and jumped off the jet using his spider legs to break his fall, and couldn’t help but furrow his brows at the sight. He felt being among  _smeets_. The majority of the Resistance’s fighters had been in battles before yet they acted like first year recruits, allowing the excitement of the younger ones to pass on to them and were already bragging about which infamous invader they would vanquish in one-on-one combat.

With a barely visible shake of his head he walked past them and let his Pak snap shut in a challenging way, a sound those so-called soldiers ought to beware of, instead they only got all the more excited and louder about how they would slay their opponents. The Irk growled under his breath but didn’t let himself in for teaching them a lesson. He was well aware of the fact that most of them had only fought space station crews and lesser invaders, careless enough to engage the rebels; the  _Massive_ ’s elite soldiers, however, would be of a totally different mold. He genuinely felt sorry for them.

He had halfway expected that they’d try and use him as an example to test their soldiers' aim but Tork had assured him of the immunity he now possessed thanks to the oath he had sworn. It was not that he wasn’t completely certain he’d be able to defeat each and every one of these fools blindfolded and with his arms on his back, but then he thought back to the incident with the Prerk and he felt a feeling of wariness cooling his haughty head. He had probably gotten overconfident after conquering so many planets without any trouble all these years.

Set crossed a fifth of the ship’s length to get back to Tork’s personal quarters. He found himself more than glad that the Commander had insisted on having the invader in his team; together with a second stealth team of Xakahr’s finest guards they were supposed to attack the  _Massive_  directly and find a way inside and straight to the Tallest. That Set knew the interior of the ship inside out had been the only reason the Admiral agreed to assign him to Tork’s unit, which was quite a benefit to their intentions.

Tork turned around with a grim smile when Set ducked his head to enter through the low-built doorway. The other members of their unit were already accounted for – actually they scarcely left the Commander’s side, most of them were from his own personal security force. A few of the other recruits, who had up to now been stationed on the home planet, flinched hard as the giant Irken stepped into the room ever so casually. A chiding glare of Tork made them snap back to attention.

    “Is everything prepared?” the Commander grunted and Set nodded briskly before he straightened his tall frame, pushing his shoulders back what made him seem even taller. His antennae flicked through the air in silent respect for Tork as his commanding officer.

    “Yes, sir. The jets are prepared and ready for battle. There shouldn’t be any trouble.” He replied calmly and no small number of the fighters and pilots sighed with relief. Tork gave a pleased nod.

    “Excellent… Men, we will only have this one opportunity to ever break through the armada’s ranks, you all know that. But what awaits us after that is ten times as difficult. Who am I kidding, a  _hundred_ times. Thanks to invader Set here we have a fair chance to accomplish this completely lunatic mission without every one of us kicking the bucket. But don’t kid yourself: the majority of you  _will_  kick the bucket, even I am not immune to death but I count on your loyalty to complete our mission even with me gone. And this is why we mustn’t hesitate to through everything we got at the enemy. The Irkens that await you don’t  _expect_ you, which is our only advantage. Apart from that they exceed you in every aspect; Swiftness, coordination, cold bloodedness, and straight up experience.”

    “Pff, I only believe it when I see it.” A young Vort muttered and it got dead quiet in an instant. Some of the older soldiers shook their heads and Tork slowly turned towards the loudmouth.

    “Set… if you’d be so kind?” he sighed and the Irken grinned. “Defend yourself, kid.” The Commander merely said and the Vort gave him a confused look when he already got thrown to the ground by a metal spider leg that pinned him to the floor mercilessly. Set hadn’t moved a single muscle nor bothered to even look at his opponent. A second spider leg leveled at the Vort’s throat.

    “Dead.” Set stated disinterested, causing scattered laughter but the majority of the attending crew members was just looking at him terrified.

    “Of course Set is after the Tallest themselves the strongest and most skilled Irken in their army but I have a strong suspicion that even a lower class  _recruit_ would have been able to do that.” Tork leaned back again and pointed one accusing finger at the youngster, who was now crawling back behind the safety of his companions with his face pale and of a sickly grey. “Don’t you ever think you’re prepared. We’re not ready for this fight, not by a long shot, and yet here we are. You all know what your objective is and I hope for you that you’ll never think about giving up for one second, no matter who might stand in your way and be it the Tallest themselves. Are we clear?”

A “Yessir” followed in chorus and Tork nodded contented with another glum smile. “Then let’s change this war for the better.”

The soldiers were dismissed and left the quarters. Set wondered how Jenna was doing. He enjoyed the confidence Tork placed in his abilities but he’d preferred to be with her now… or at least nearby. He too was aware that the assassin who had tried to kill him with the gut-gorger was still running free and he wasn’t sure if the culprit had followed him onto this ship or was back on the home planet…

Reliat exhaled shakily behind him and the Irken rolled his eyes. True, he had promised Jenna to keep an eye out for the Ilenian but his always impending panic attacks didn’t make it all that easy for him to take on this task euphorically. The young doctor was one of the few Ilenians that were accompanying the assault force. Most of them served the Resistance mostly with scientific and supportive functions since many of them loathed violence by instinct. Thus the majority of the rebel army was Vortians and it consisted of only a few other races, like the Steelhunters, but those were way fewer represented than the Vortians. When their planet fell many of the pugnacious and swift Vorts managed to escape the armada. And vindictive as they were the Resistance had formed around those survivors. There was barely a free Vortian who wasn’t directly linked to the rebels or supported them at least.

    “A- and you really think we will… get on that ship  _alive_?” Reliat asked rattled, of course Set’s little demonstration from just now had showed him quite plainly who they were going to fight.

    “As long as they don’t realize what we’re up to… but in that case there’s still Plan B.” Set returned as patient as he managed to. Reliat shuddered.

    “I like Plan B even less…” he mumbled quietly and the Irken would’ve loved to nod at that yet his pride forbade him to show any sign of reluctance in the face of war. Plan B was a pure act of desperation, absolutely their last resort and attended with an even higher body count than the actual plan itself. Should it come to that it would be everybody for themselves, what Reliat knew without doubt.

Set thought of Jenna.

   
  


    “What do you mean he  _attacked_ you? I didn’t see anything!” Car sat with Jenna on her bed and thumbed through the drawings in her sketchbook. The human flopped on her back with a groan.

    “I  _mean_ that the Zar'tak was suddenly standing behind me, his arms  _reaching_ for me with his teeth  _bared_ and the eyes  _glowing_ like fricking ghost lights! How could you’ve not seen that?!” she explained annoyed for the third time. Car just frowned.

    “And  _I_ told you, I didn’t see anything because it was  _pitch-black_! You sure you weren’t hallucinating again?” she gave her friend a skeptic glance and Jenna was about to groan again when the Vortian suddenly widened her eyes. “Oh, wait… why haven’t I thought of that before?” she turned around to Jenna and raised her hands as if she wanted to cast a spell. “Those Zar'tak are first and foremost demonized and shunned because of their magic, which explains why the light went on again when I hit the switch and why I couldn’t see him booming over you; it was an illusion!”

Jenna sat upright halfway, her eyebrow cocked in utter confusion.

    “Okay, now you lost me.  _What_?!” she shook her head, “Let’s be serious Car, I’ve seen some pretty  _weird_ things up to now but that doesn’t mean I’m also believing in sorcery now!” Jenna retorted almost chuckling but Car narrowed her eyes sulkily.

    “Well I don’t mean like  _magic_  magic, but Zar'tak are able to manipulate their environment and even change it. Before the war broke out they even had to be classified by the Galactic Council because of their potential danger to the galaxy’s peace and they weren’t allowed to travel to certain systems. But when Vort fell the Galactic Council collapsed as well and with it its laws. The other races were sure the Zar'tak would take revenge for their racist treatment but instead most of them just disappeared off the radar and some of them even joined the Resistance.” Car explained excited. Jenna frowned at her.

    “But you still mistrust them… what reasons do they have to help you at all? I mean, sure, the Irkens have to be stopped, everybody knows that except for  _them_. But affiliating with the races who were responsible for your oppression… “

The Vortian shrugged.

    “Nobody knows why, they don’t speak. I believe the only time one of them spoke was before the Galactic Council. After that all the members had complained about awful headaches that lasted for days; apparently the Zar'tak delegate had used telepathy to communicate with the council.”

Jenna pricked up her ears at that. Could it be that the Zar'tak was behind Feorn’s ghostly voice and her weird dreams as of late? Were they maybe even linked to the Pakrit somehow? All these abilities Car described sounded suspiciously similar to what the Pakrit had enabled her to do.

    “What else can they do?” she asked curiously and Car took her time to think before she answered with hesitation:

    “I’m not really  _sure_ … most of the things people talk about is just rumors and superstition. But my father told me once that they  _do_ have telepathic powers and can even hypnotize you. The creepiest thing is that they’re allegedly able to move objects with their mind and can disappear into thin air. Do you think we should tell Nemon about that?” she interposed nervously and Jenna’s look turned irresolute.

    “Well, actually it would be reasonable and probably the best thing to do… but if that creep keeps trying to kill me then he surely won't flinch from attacking everyone who tries to stop him. I don’t want to put Nemon in danger.”

The Vortian femme snorted half amused and half irritated.

    “Oh, but you’re fine with putting me in danger then, huh?  _Hello-o_ , after all you’re talking to me about it right now! But…” she added with a grin when Jenna was already looking dismayed at her, “I’d be more angry at you if you hadn’t told me. From now on we’re both watching out that he doesn’t get you, alright?”

    “I’d prefer we somehow take him by surprise and make him talk. He has to be hired by somebody; I can’t imagine why else he would suddenly be out to get me.” Jenna pointed out and Car nodded thoughtfully.

    “True… do you think it might be the same guy who tried to slip your Irken the gut-gorger that hired the Zar'tak? I bet that asshole had to tag along on the  _Vengeance_  and he got him to do his dirty work.”

The human sighed and stared at the ceiling.

    “That could be but I think it’s more likely that both of them were hired by somebody entirely else to kill both of us…” She let her words hang in the room until Car’s eyes narrowed into tiny slits.

    “ _Xakahr_ …” she uttered and Jenna nodded slowly.

    “He knew about Set's arrival on the  _Rebellion_ and he wanted to kill him without hesitation on his big speech, if anything because the gut-gorger trick didn’t work out so well, no doubt. But now that the oath protects Set from being executed publicly he initiates this assault on the  _Massive_ to have Set out of the way so his  _second_ assassin, the Zar'tak, can kill me in peace and quiet the second an opportune moment presents itself. And since everybody already hates and mistrusts the Zar'tak no suspicion will fall on the Admiral.”

Car had listened quietly and whistled through her teeth, gobsmacked.

    “ _Shit_ … and what do you want to do now?” The Vortian asked grim, her fingertips drumming and impatient rhythm on the sketchbook.

    “We'd have to trick him somehow… though I’m not really sure how to trick someone who can read minds.”

    “They can only  _talk_ through telepathy, nobody said anything about mind-reading. But I will move my quarter to yours as long as Reliat and the Irken are gone. He will surely try to kill you in your sleep since it didn’t work out today.” Car stated and nodded affirmative what made Jenna pale.

    “Th-That’s really nice of you but now I don’t think I’ll be able to sleep at all.”

 

Despite her prediction Jenna was indeed able to sleep. In fact she dreamt the second her head touched the small, thin pillow. But this dream was different than the one she usually had, even so they equaled each other in dread. She was standing in the rebel city, everything was scorched to the ground and one single scene of destruction. She felt grief inside her and something else: rage. A rage that swelled and burned and she saw crimson flames licking from her eyes, blurring her vision. Slowly Jenna turned around and was met with a figure standing a few feet away. Because of the glaring fire burning behind them she could only made out a shape but she recognized a Vort standing with his back turned towards her.

Her rage shifted into burning hatred and she lunged at him without hesitation, grabbing a burnt iron bar sticking out of the rubble.

    “ _Xakahr_!” she roared but the Vortian didn’t turn around to face her. Berserk with fury Jenna drove the iron bar into his back and felt satisfied how it pierced the sturdy torso with a crunching sound. A wild grin caught her as she turned him around with a jerk of the bar. But it wasn’t the mad Admiral she had killed. Jenna recoiled appalled; the Vort had no face! His head was smooth and without any features. Then she felt something creeping down her back, like ghostly fingers running down her spine and she turned around even slower.

Green eyes, as big as moons floated over her in the black void, staring at her. Jenna fell to her knees and was paralyzed with fear, there was no escaping these eyes, no place where she could possibly hide from them. Those eyes would find her everywhere. She opened her mouth and screamed.

    “Wake  _up_!” someone shouted loudly next to her ear and she thought for a moment that it was Set. Then Car slapped her cheek and she jerked from her nightmare. Struggling for air Jenna shot up and clawed into the blanket, looking around with feverish eyes. “Jenna, what did you-“ – “He’s  _here_!” The human hissed and Car frowned deeply.

    “Jenna, we’re alone in here, there is nobody. You dreamt.” Car replied groggy and gently grabbed her shoulders.

Jenna gave a wary look around the room. But it was indeed empty.

    “Strange… I was dead-certain…”

There was a sudden noise outside. Both women froze in horror and shot each other a scared glare. Then Car jumped off the bed, Jenna hot on her heels. Quietly they snuck up to the door and Car slid back the small cover of the observation slit. With wide eyes she wheeled around to Jenna.

    “ _Shit_! It’s really him!” she wheezed shrill and Jenna huddled against her.

    “What’s he doing?” she wanted to know and the Vortian pressed her eye back against the window.

    “He… he was startled by something, there’s someone else… one of my kin, I think it’s a tech! The Zar'tak must’ve run into him but he’s alright, he’s already getting back up. Now he’s running away!”

Jenna cursed under her breath.

    “Great! Now the Zar'tak has all the time he needs to kill us!” she grunted but Car quickly shook her head.

    “I don’t think so! The other one will run straight to the guards, see, the bastard scrams!” she fell silent for a second and observed the hallway before she sank against the door with a relieved sigh. “He’s gone.”

Jenna swallowed hard and let herself fall against the wall as well.

    “That was close… if that Vort hadn’t shown up we would be pretty dead by now.” She wiped her forehead with the back of her hand, cold sweat had formed on her skin. “Shit… what do we do now? We can’t just sit here and wait for him to  _eventually_ get us!” Jenna spat. Car raised her hands.

    “Don’t you think now would be a good time to tell Nemon? He could help us for sure!”

     “And what’s he supposed to do? The Zar'tak was hired by Xakahr and you said yourself that the guy who’s in charge during his absence is his SIC. So that won’t help us out and Nemon would only get in danger if they knew he was helping me! No… we have to take this bastard out ourselves.”

Car nodded slowly and snatched her Chronometer to type a message. Jenna blinked.

    “What are you doing?”

    “I think I know someone who might be able to help us out, plus he owns me a big favor. Don’t worry, I won’t tell him what’s going on, we’ll just get some information… and maybe one thing or another.” Car replied with a grin and Jenna had the feeling she knew that her friend was up to no good, but that was quite alright with her.

    “Okay, let’s get back to sleep.” She muttered exhausted and crawled back into her bed

    “Oh and just so you know; if you as much as  _talk_ in your sleep again I’ll give you a clip around the ear!” Car hissed and curled up in her blanket.

 

 

Zar'tak Concept Art by meeeee~ :3 jsut look at this fucker!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Set!! Fly back, your wifey's in danger D: 
> 
> I don't know if I'll be able to update next week, we have some family business coming up and I'll be busy all week and the weekend :/


	62. Plan B - Pt. 2

###  **\- 24 Plan B -**

#### Part 2

 _5 hours later - Planet of the Resistance - MedBay Complex_  
  
  
     “You don’t look like you’ve gotten all that much of a good night’s rest…” Nemon greeted them thoughtfully the next day when Car and Jenna entered the MedBay, both with thick rings under their eyes.

     “You don’t say…” Car groused under her breath, annoyed, and cast Jenna a crushing glare which she merely answered with a stare just as angry. They both hadn’t been able to go back to sleep after the Zar'tak showed up in front of their door. Sighing they both got to work groggily, there was much to do as usual. Jenna found herself hoping that whatever they wanted to pick up from Car’s friend would indeed help them out.

Over and over she touched the buckle of her belt under her lab-coat to make sure the suit’s belt was still slung around her hips and hadn’t vanished into thin air all of a sudden, even though the bad shape her armor was in made her worry. Without Set there was no way for her to repair the suit and with it being shattered as it was she felt downright naked and without protection.

Fortunately the Zar'tak didn’t show up all day and there weren’t any mysterious blackouts either. Instead the day passed surprisingly uneventfully and when they were about to end their shift Jenna almost felt relaxed again.

Car went on ahead to just get something from her room, as she told Jenna reassuringly, and the human stayed behind to clean up the station and prepare it for the next shift’s crew to arrive. Jenna didn’t notice how Nemon disappeared into his personal office and put the used scalpels and tools inside the sterilizer, a hummed tune on her lips. Lost in thoughts she checked up on the incubators, wondering just then when Nemon might have time to show her the common species of bacteria among the alien races, as she was struck by that flash behind her eyes again. Confused she turned around and saw a Vort standing right behind her. Startled she recoiled and the Tech raised his hands apologetic.

    “Whoa, s-sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you! Is… uhm, Dr. Nemon not here? I wanted to- to talk to him.” He explained and gave her a shy, crooked grin, his eyes anxiously darting towards the scalpel she had grabbed in her start. Jenna tried to calm her racing heart and dropped the sharp knife into the sterilizer; she recognized the Vortian tech now, it was the very same that had checked on them after the Zar'tak had caused the Blackout.

    “Oh, sure, no problem. Dr. Nemon is probably in his office, I’ll go get him.” She replied a touch breathless and smiled back. In her mind she cursed the Zar'tak that she was so jumpy all of a sudden! She found Nemon in his office and asked him to come with her but when they arrived back in the Bay the Vort was gone.

    “Hm, seems it wasn’t that important after all.” Nemon stated a bit confused and went back to finish archiving his cases. Jenna too shrugged it off and slipped out of her coat to go outside and look if Car was back already. When she stepped into the hallway, looking up from her Chronometer her heartbeat stopped for a painful moment.

The Zar'tak was leaning at the opposite side of the hallway, one pair of arms crossed in front of his chest, the second one casually behind his back. The gaze from his five eyes calmly rested on her as if he had been expecting her, yet he didn’t move, but she did a quick step back, her hand darting down to her belt. His glare followed the motion unfazed and he tilted his head to the side, his jaws opening slightly, only leaving a notion of how wide he could really tear them open. Was that supposed to be an amused grin? She wasn’t sure but saw the long teeth flashing at her and froze in her step.

    “What do you  _want_  from me?” she managed to snap and clenched her fists in defiance. “Why are you following me?!”

Jenna raised her voice, hoping Nemon would hear her, or anybody for that matter. But there was no one around and an eerie silence had filled the usually so lively station. She felt her hair standing on end as the glare from these glowing green eyes seemed to intensify at her bold words, melting them into one big, glowing eyeball. Jenna heard a buzzing in her head, swelling and subsiding, and trembled at the feeling; her hands already wanted to shoot up to cover her ears and block out the noise but she was frozen to the spot, unable to move. The buzzing got louder, and suddenly the ceiling lights started to flicker, the light making the Zar'tak’s shadow dance as if to form a second phantom in the hallway when he pushed off the wall – it was more like a smooth gliding – and took a step towards her.

She was able to flinch back, but the door to the MedBay had already closed on her and her back collided hard with the metal.

The buzzing in her mind grew even louder, traveling from one ear to the other while the alien swayed his snake-like head from side to side like he was trying to pick up her scent.

    “No…  _please_ …” she panted breathless and felt her heart thumping away desperately in her chest as he stepped closer and closer, extending one arm. It was a long, black, shapeless limb that turned into a hand before her eyes, grabbing for her.

    “ _HEY_!” Car's shout ripped through the horrible moment and the Zar'tak wheeled around surprised. The Vortian was running down the hallway, drawing a pistol from her holster but when Jenna took her look back to facing him, the Zar'tak was gone, only a dark wisp of smoke curled up in front of her, slowly dispersing in the air. The lights went back on again and the strange silence was torn by the sound of Car’s hooves clanking brightly on the metal floor, every step pulling her more and more out of her paralysis. She exhaled a shaking pant and had to clutch the doorframe to not keel over. “Jenna! Jenna are you alright?” Car asked short of breath and grabbed her shoulders to look her over closely. Jenna glanced around with wide eyes but there really was no trace of the Zar'tak.

    “He… he waited… he waited until everyone was  _gone_ and watched for me to come out… oh god… oh god,  _Car_!” she whimpered terrified and clasped a hand over her mouth. Her shaking knees were about to give way and she felt sick. The Vortian drew her into her arms and stroked her head gently.

    “Shhh, it’s alright, I’m here…” she calmed the human quietly. In this moment the door to the MedBay opened behind them and a concerned Nemon stepped into the hallway.

    “What is going on? I heard screams!” he called out confused and saw Jenna’s pale face, wet with tears and the wary look on Car’s. “Jenna! What  _happened_?” his face grew dark upon spying the weapon in Car’s hand. She shook her head adamantly but Jenna just couldn’t take it anymore:

    “He wants to kill me Nemon! It- it’s the Zar'tak, who was here when the blackout happened! H- he’s been following me since Set left with Tork and the others, I- I thought it was over!” she sobbed and clung to Car. Nemon looked at her appalled, then he looked around the hallway alert and pulled the two of them back into the MedBay, closing the door behind them. Car lead Jenna to one of the stretchers, bringing her a cup of water while the Ilenian locked the door and closed the shutters before he came back to them.

    “Are you sure?” he asked sternly and Car nodded in her stead.

    “He was outside her quarter last night, but a Tech surprised him and he had to come off empty-handed. I’m one hundred percent sure he’s stalking her. We believe that  _Xakahr_ might have hired him to kill her… I never should’ve left you alone.” She hissed reproachfully and put back her gun. Jenna shook her head.

    “It’s not your fault. We never expected him to be so blunt and try to attack me in a hallway in broad daylight.” She gave back softly, moved by her friend’s emotions. Nemon however frowned.

    “Did he really  _attack_  you?” he asked quietly and Car wheeled around to him, flaring indignant.

    “What are you trying to say? That she’s lying?” she protested but a look from him made her cool her head in an instant and Car glanced to Jenna, stubborn. “It’s the truth!”

    “I mean, did he try to kill you right off the bat or did he do something different? Zar'taks are efficient killers that don’t tend to play with their victims. And much less if it’s a contracted assassination.” He explained patient and looked at Jenna. She was already about to reply to that but then she hesitated.

    “I… no, he was  _staring_ at me and… then he stepped closer and reached out for me as if he wanted to touch me… but there was this buzzing in my head and I was unable to move!” she added upset and jumped off the stretcher. “And yesterday, when the lights went out, he was standing behind me all of a sudden, with teeth bared and about to assault me!” The mere thought of those green, glowing eyes made her tremble.

Nemon furrowed his brows, he didn’t seem all that convinced about what he had said just now.

    “That is… strange indeed, even for the likes of him… but why should Xakahr hire a Zar'tak of all aliens when it would be much easier to choose somebody that attracted much less attention?” he pointed out and Car rolled her eyes.

    “Well, because nobody will connect a  _Zar'tak_  to Xakahr, duh! You know he hates them, and everyone else already mistrusts them so it wouldn’t be much of a surprise if one of their kind kills someone out of the blue.” She explained and Jenna nodded.

    “That’s right. Since I’ve sworn the oath he can’t just execute me so he gets someone else to do his dirty work for him.” She growled and shuddered. “What should we do, Nemon? If Xakahr is really behind all of this we can’t turn to his proxy… and waiting for Tork and Set to return…” she stopped and bit her lower lip. The word ‘ _if’_ had come to her mind and she refused to finish the thought. Set  _would_  come back to her! He promised… but what if Tork didn’t make it back? He was the only one with enough power and men behind him to protect them from Xakahr!

    “We could try to catch him.” Nemon proposed just then and she looked up. How would you catch somebody that could disappear into thin air, pray tell?

    “Yeah, that’s what I had in mind, as well.” Car agreed surprisingly enough and Jenna looked around between the two, confused.

    “What do you mean? I thought he can just vanish like that, I saw it a second ago!” she interposed and Nemon gave her a grin.

    “Well, the Zar'tak’s abilities are without doubt incredible and for most they’re little short of magic. Yet you can easily faze them with electromagnetic fields as studies have shown, their telekinetic powers can be rendered completely useless by strong fields, making it quite easy to catch them once you manage to take them off guard. Car, I suppose you’re going to visit an old friend again, am I right?” he said to the Vortian and she nodded with a wide grin.

    “Aye… he owes me after all, and since he’s back in town… I figured I ought to visit him anyway.”

After Jenna had fully recovered they both took off, exiting the MedBay while never leaving each other’s side.

    “I just wish Set was here…” Jenna sighed and Car nodded vehemently.

   
  


    “We’re here.” Tork just stated when he entered the common quarters of his crew.

Startled the members of his assault team and his personal guard jumped to their feet, calling out in protest and confusion. Set, who was sitting on a bench for himself, resting, lifted his head with a flash in his eyes and they quieted in a second. The Commander gave him a thankful nod. “I know, we were supposed to reach the  _Massive_  not before the next cycle but as it happens she was already sighted by our scouts. They've never been this close to our base before… I got a bad feeling that we’re encountering them ahead of schedule but that won’t change anything in our plan of action. I just hope you all had time to prepare. Assemble in the hangar in t minus five. Set, you’re in charge that everyone is ready.” With this he turned around and left the common quarters tailed by his two bodyguards, a battle-scarred, mute Vortian and a Steelhunter.

All of a sudden the previous nervous tension was replaced by a hectic rush as everyone quickly donned their armor, exo-suits or whatever makeshift protection they had crafted, and armed themselves with their ragtag supply of weapons to make their way to the hangar. Some of them were even armed with simple, yet quite deadly, plasma-cutters.

Set shouldered the giant semi-automatic shotgun Tork had recommended. No one else was strong enough to use it but to him the weapon felt astonishingly light despite its hefty build and it had enough ammunition to last him a life time yet he packed lightly on clips, each of them containing five rounds with sixty shots of titanium projectiles in them. Though relatively small their impact was strong enough to shatter even thick armor plates like those of his own suit and he had favored its brute force over that of an energy weapon.

With a stern expression he looked the equipment of each of them over, ordering adjustments here and there and finally nodded grimly when he found them ready to leave. The other fighters made way for him respectfully when he left the hall behind Tork and even the younger soldiers didn’t mutter their displeasure anymore but had quickly accepted his new position as SIC even though he was Irken. After Tork he now held the direct command over their group and would keep it after the fight if everything went smoothly, or he would rise to be Commander should Tork fall and their mission turn out a success.

When they entered the giant hangar the second infiltration-force was already accounted for as well as the vast number of fighter pilots; yet even so they were hardly more than 400 men. Xakahr overlooked his small army from his elevated podium and smiled pleased. When his gaze fell upon Set his smile curled into a wide, malevolent grin and the invader involuntarily tensed his muscles, only held back by his senses to not immediately jump at the pompous Vort and thrust all six of his spider legs into his body.

He quickly averted his eyes to let it travel over the ranks of aliens at arms, all murmuring excited and ready to fight. Gradually he too felt the familiar buzzing excitement rising inside him in view of the coming battle, even though he had to admit that he felt uneasy at the thought of eventually facing his former leaders and he wasn’t sure he’d be able to beat them.

He cast the thought aside and listened with half an antenna to Xakahr’s overblown speech about a glorious day for the Resistance and the approaching dawn of a new era for the galaxy, and he all but laughed out loud. If Xakahr really thought that their assault would have any effect on the course of this war he was not only mad but plain mental. He glanced over to the jets and scanned them secretly. The sensors of his Pak reported that no alteration had been made to them. Good. Something else he wouldn't need to worry about.   
He was ready.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The two conflicts are entering their heated stage... now there's only hoping it will all turn out for the best! Or worst? hmmmmmmmmm  
> *tips fingers together pondering*
> 
> What to do...
> 
> aaaugh I almost had a heart attack yesterday because my pre-written file got corrupted (there was only the first chapter left lawlz) and I spent an hour trying to fix it until I opened it with WordPad and everything was back x']
> 
> ack *dies*
> 
> also I had a ton of fun researching on sci-fi weapons 8D I wanted to nerd out about Set's shotty but then I was like eh, naw I shouldn't geek out about combustion light gas guns, railguns and mass accelerator cannons herp derp~


	63. Plan B - Pt. 3

###  **\- 24 Plan B -**

#### Part 3

  
After Xakahr’s speech the two infiltration teams got ready to board their transporters while the fighter pilots got to start their engines. Their task was as dangerous as it was futile; the fighters were to engage in battles with the armada’s fleet of battle cruisers, keeping them busy, and most of them would get killed in the fight, no doubt.

Set was the last to board his designated transporter, overlooking the boarding process and scanning the rows of soldiers for Reliat as he walked up to the smaller transporter with Tork. He didn’t have to search long, though: the Ilenian was walking right behind him.

Set looked over his shoulder and gave him a lopsided sneer.

    “You better shouldn’t be standing behind me when we get attacked, y’know.” He commented dryly, his Pak snapping shortly and Reliat did a startled step to the side. Set grinned. “A little bit farther maybe but don’t worry, I’m not expecting all too many to be able to sneak up on me.” He felt his anticipation growing until his muscles were trembling from excitement. Contented he flexed them, had to vainly satisfy himself of the immense power he possessed and did a last check-up on his Pak before he signaled the ground crew to close the transporter’s hatch.

Everything was ready to go.

The pilots would be their vanguard, engaging in battles with the Irken fleet while a third transporter, bigger than theirs or Xakahr’s would make straight for the  _Massive_ , seemingly trying to board the flagship, serving as a diversion for the strike teams. They had decided to leave the  _Vengeance_  out of the battle, as she was too precious too loose to the Irkens and their only way to get back to home base. The two teams would first stay outside the  _Massive_ ’s scanner range and then sneak up on them during the raging battle to enter the ship through one of the smaller cargo docks in the upper part of the main ship. The transporters were covered in thick plating, which special material served as excellent camouflage against the  _Massive_ ’s radars, though it also made the vessels hard to pilot at the same time and it certainly left no room for cannons or other weaponry, leaving them vulnerable in the event of a direct assault.

But Set wasn’t all that concerned about that, he had been through worse in his trainee years and would finish their mission alone if he had to. But that grin Xakahr had shot him before his speech made the invader nervous and had left a gross taste in his mouth. It had been a knowing grin, as if the Admiral was plotting something or had already set his plans into action. But this too had to wait, there was nothing he could do about it right now, so he calmed his thoughts with trained control.

The transporters left the  _Vengeance_  drop-off zone and flew a wide arch around the still invisible armada to wait for their signal. Set positioned himself before one of the narrow windows and let a special pair of infrared goggles snap from his Pak to watch the fight. They were more like a half helm that wrapped around his head and was connected directly to his Pak for better performance. Yet still the enhancement wasn’t half as impressive as that of his old combat suit from his days as a soldier but it was enough to spy the  _Massive_  among the armada, floating sluggishly through space in about 500 million sik distance. He couldn’t see the tiny fighters but their signal wouldn’t be easy to miss.

To prevent the two transporters from getting spotted by radio signals it had been decided to remove all sorts of long- and short-range comm from them and only give the strike teams close-ranged mini transmitters so they could at least coordinate their attack. Apart from that, they had no contact to the  _Vengeance_  or the fighter pilots.

Thus they sat in silence, waiting tensed for the signal. Only Tork was talking quietly with the pilot now and then or into his mini transmitter to keep in touch with Xakahr’s team and retrieve their status.

A Ti passed before the first clashes became visible. Set spotted multiple smaller explosions but whether they were Irken fighters or their own he couldn’t tell. They had already crossed the distance to now five hundred thousand sik and were waiting with nerves taut as steel ropes for their signal. With strained eyes the Irk stared out of the hatch, his eyes narrowed in concentration.

Suddenly a fighter collided with the  _Massive_ ’s hull and the exploding jet gave off a bright flash in the black void.

    “Signal sighted.” He reported composed and that was the signal for the pilot to trade places with the invader, who sank down on the small seat and accelerated the transporter to its maximum velocity, taking the lead. Xakahr’s transporter followed hard on his heels with the same breakneck speed as they dived down towards the  _Massive_. Set raced for the upper cargo hatch and dipped the transporter slightly to get through the narrow opening. At the last second two Irken fighters wanted to turn around and intercept them but they were too slow. Like black shadows the two transporters dashed through the hatch’s energy field into the hangar and broke their flight on the ground, the thick camo-plating working in their favor, and Set jerked the cyclic around, making the tail swing out to bury some of the startled ground crew members beneath it.

After a risky glissade through the hangar they stopped with a loud shriek of metal against metal and opened a hatch to use their moment of advantage. But the battle-tested Irken soldiers recovered quickly from their initial shock and were already regrouping behind pieces of cargo. The rebels entrenched behind the transporter’s doors, returning fire, but since the vessels had stopped a good bit apart from each other the Irkens had to fight at two fronts and their reinforcements were tarrying.

Set scanned his surroundings, already looking for a way out of this hangar, when he saw the helmet of a fallen lieutenant and an idea struck his mind; but they had to hurry. He pushed the soldier next to the door behind him to take his spot, and he was a lot more efficient taking them out one by one with his huge shotgun. But every time one of his bullet sprays ripped the body of an Irken apart he felt a strangely unpleasant sensation, one he had never felt before. But he didn’t hesitate one second, just accepted that the feeling was there and decided to talk to Jenna about it after the fight. They were now his enemies, and they were standing in his way.

With a well-aimed shot he finished off the last soldier who dared to leave his cover, almost taking his entire head off with the shot, and turned towards Tork.

    “Their reinforcements are under way. I have a plan, but for that we’ll have to destroy the security cameras around this perimeter, they can’t see me or the plan won’t work. Once they’re all out I’ll take one of their lieutenant’s helmets and pretend I’ve captured you. This way we should be at the Command Bridge in no time.”

The Commander nodded and gave the order to his men. But Xakahr came parading down the ramp of his transporter, eyeing the corpses with a derogative expression before he made his way towards them, already giving Set another one of his glares.

    “Hmph, that took long  _enough_. What the hell is he up to  _now_?” he growled in Set’s general direction, who’ve had quite enough of his pompous demeanor.

    “Well, if I  _may_ , Admiral, I’d like to make a suggestion as to how we should progress from here.” Set answered controlled and ignored the way Xakahr was grimacing. The Vort waved his hand impatiently.

    “You may  _not_! You might know this ship in and out but I’m still the one in charge of this operation. And I say we split up. Tork, you will take your team and create a diversion as you make for the Command Bridge. This one,” he pointed at Set, grinning, “will show me the most direct route to his leaders so I won’t have to deal with foot-soldiers and have the element of surprise over this blasted vermin. Go!”

Reliat shot Set a terrified glance and even Tork didn’t look that stoked. Plan B had just been set into action. Maybe not the way they had expected but without Set the others would have only the slightest of chances to leave the  _Massive_  alive. He would have to hurry.

Set looked at Tork and nodded.

    “Commander…” he gave his respectful farewell and the Vortian nodded back soberly before gathering his men around him and they left the hangar.

Xakahr was humming contented.

    “Well then, Irken invader, show us the way to your so-called Tallest.” He snapped and Set turned around without a word, walking over to one of the many hidden drone tunnels. When the Admiral saw the dark, narrow opening he frowned.

    “You go first, and no tricks! If you decide to try something stupid your sweet little human will pay for it.”

Set wheeled back around, fury in his crimson eyes. He towered the squat Vortian by almost a meter and he even flinched back from the fuming Irken.

    “You have no right, I swore your damn oath! If you dare as much as to lay a finger on her…” his voice was booming from rage and his teeth were clicking menacingly as he ejected his spider legs. But Xakahr caught himself quicker than his team.

    “Mind your words, Irken scum! Up to now she is unharmed but should you further disregard my authority I will have her executed; your oath means nothing to me!” he spat out before Set and made a dismissive gesture. “ _I_  swore to wipe out your wretched race and the same counts for you if you don’t prove yourself useful to me! So… shall we?” he added with a sardonic grin and Set had to force himself not to tear him apart here and now.

Hissing he turned back and reloaded his shotgun with a violent jerk; he had to really bend down to fit into the narrow tunnel but he went in anyway. He cursed himself in his mind that he hadn’t considered something like that! He hadn’t even repaired Jenna’s suit before he left! Now he could only hope that his other precaution wouldn’t fail. His guts twisted at the mere thought that something could happen to Jenna. And still, as painful as it was, his instincts and his cold discipline as a soldier kept the upper hand over his mind and he turned his focus back on the mission.

Without a sound he crept forward through the tunnels, hoping Tork and his team would somehow make it to the Command Bridge and the Tallest quarters alive  _before_  they arrived yet he highly doubted it.

One time Tork called over the close range comm, radioing their position but Xakahr forbade any further contact sharply, they were in enemy territory and the Irkens could probably intercept their radio, which was the reason they had no contact to the pilot fleet in the first place.

But Set had overheard where Tork’s team was at this moment and his hopes on executing the initial plan were rising again. He managed to put a few detours into their route without Xakahr noticing but still it didn’t take long until he finally pushed open the hatch in front of the Bridge.

The doors were sealed shut, as was usual in a combat situation but he was confident in the arrogance of his former leaders. He meddled with the control panel and entered the internal codes he knew as an elite soldier and invader and his antennae picked up a satisfying bleep. As expected the Tallest hadn’t bothered to disable his access codes.

    “The door will be unlocked soon… there will be countless techs and guards so you should better get to cover.” He pointed out and heard Xakahr snort scornfully.

    “Do you think I don’t know that already? Why do you think I bothered to bring you along? You’re going to get in there and clear the way for me.” The Vortian snarled.

Set nodded.

    “I thought so.” Unnoticed he scanned the environment. There were too many in his back to make his move just yet and above all they were still too vigilant. His best chances really lay in pressing forward for now and take out the techs that had no idea they were about to get assaulted. Moreover they wouldn’t expect to get attacked by one of their own kind what would give him enough time to play out his advantages. Despite that it would all get different once the Tallest were to show up on the Bridge but for now his scans couldn’t detect them anywhere which probably was a good thing.

In this second the door slid back and he sprinted forward. The surprised techs looked up from their consoles when he already struck down the first one with two, three shots. Too taken by surprise the Irkens still couldn’t react, only when Set pierced the guards beside the door with four of his spider legs, movement came into the crew. All of them jumped to their feet, those with weapons shot at him, the rest quickly took cover behind the heavy consoles to not stand in the way.

Set retreated, using the closing door as cover. Thanks to his swift reflexes the shot directed at him got one of Xakahr’s guards instead. The Vort’s face exploded in a blue cloud of blood and smoke and he simply sank to the ground where he stood.

Set had trouble suppressing a pleased grin and opened the door again to take a few shots himself. He picked up multiple pained screams and a dull thud. So, one more tech was down at least. Leaving another dozen.

He would play for time as long as he could and hoped the noise would tell Tork where he was. On the other hand he was risking getting between the Tallest themselves and their doubtlessly already requested reinforcements this way.

Another Irken fell but now the techs have had enough time to regroup. Something flashing rolled through the door’s opening and Set did the only reasonable thing: he jumped forward and let the heavy door fall shut behind him. Even so the force of the explosion was enough to burst the steel door open. A big piece of it crashed into his leg and threw him to the ground. Cursing Set tried to push it off with his free foot but by then a soldier was already over him, raising his gun. Set lashed out with his spider legs but the soldier parried his blow with his own, leveling his gun back at the invader’s face while more and more Irkens came running around the consoles to finish him.

But Set had once been in a similar situation and he had definitely learned from the fight against the Prerk. He wrestled the rifle from the Irken before him, a shot fired and grazed his skull but he didn’t feel the pain, using his spider legs to raise his body off the ground he electrocuted them. The shock was carried by the metal flooring, stunning the startled techs. Set stayed unharmed since his Pak and the spider legs were isolated from the rest of his body.

The power wasn’t nearly strong enough to kill his foes, but at least it stunned them long enough for him to struggle free and get into a better point of vantage to keep firing. His leg was barely able to put strain on which he could compensate with an alteration on his suit’s support settings but now blood was leaking out the wound on his head and into his eyes, taking away his sight. He finished off another tech when a heavy shot tore through the room, the impact in his shoulder swinging him around hard with incredible force. Halfway into falling Set felt how the splinters of his broken suit burrowed through his shoulder, pulled along by the sheer momentum of the projectile, ripping apart muscles and bones alike, exiting his body on the other side.

The pain that flared in his left side was enough to execute his Pak’s emergency-sequence. A massive load of Pakrit shot into his bloodstream and his brain, numbing the Pain. His spider legs caught the shotgun he dropped in order to grab his left shoulder with his right hand. Horrified Set clenched his fingers around the gaping wound and realized that his left arm was only held in place by the fabric of his armor’s sub-coat and he couldn’t move it anymore. Groaning in agony and grinding his teeth he looked up and saw Tallest Red hovering over the steps to the chambers, a big, smoking, armor-piercing turret projecting from his Pak along with his eight long, thorn spiked spider legs. His face was a distorted mask of rage and… was that  _fear_? It was that spark of unease in the eyes of his former leader that made Set jump to his feet in the split of a second, pressing his severed, and bleeding arm to his body.

The techs used the sudden intervention of their Tallest to flee the Bridge. From outside Set could hear screams and shots as the group encountered Xakahr and his rebels. Where the hell was Tork?

He could really use Reliat right now!      

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You know, there's a reason it's called the arm-ada ;D  
> *gets shot*   
> oh wow, I'm tearable to my characters today! But I'm sure someone can lend him a hand with that ;;;))))))  
> hey, look on the bright side: he still has all his legs!
> 
> .... welp, this surely doesn't look all that good now does it?  
> I wonder when Purple will show his ass~


	64. Plan B - Pt. 4

###  **\- 24 Plan B -**

#### Part 4

 

The sirens were blaring like a deafening choir, numbing his antennae, the Command Bridge tinted in a light as red as the pain tearing at the seams of his mind, as red as the cold, merciless eyes of his former leader before him. Set didn’t dare to let Red out of sight for one second, tensing his muscles, weighing his odds, bleeding out. He would be able to use his bruised leg but the blood loss from the wound, where his arm was severed from his shoulder, would hamper him much more very soon.

Soundlessly Red hovered over to the side and the invader slowly moved with him as well, the two Irkens were circling each other like starved Vorn. Doing so Set was always mindful to watch the door the Tallest had come from, in case Purple would try to attack him in the rear like a coward.

Taunting, Red opened his arms widely, a disdainful grin on his face, his spider legs waving behind him like the claws of a giant hand.

    “Look who we have here, the  _great_  invader Set! Back from the dead I see… are you here to beg us for mercy?” he rasped spitefully.

    “Do I look like I’m begging?” Set retorted aridly and reloaded his shotgun with a quick jerk of his good hand, a stinging new wave of pain flashing through his entire left side but he didn’t let it show on his face. Red snarled, baring his teeth; he was clearly losing his cool.

    “How did you manage to isolate your Pak?! Refusing the Codes should have killed you for good, so why the hell are you still  _alive_?!” Red shrieked enraged and shot without another warning.

Set jackknifed behind a console at the very last moment, cursing that he had to leave the door unwatched. He landed more than ungently behind his cover and pressed against the console groaning, keeping his eyes on Red’s reflection in the windowed front of the Bridge.

“Someone must’ve helped you then… but the rebels never figured out much about the Paks… so it could only have been one of  _us_. Usually the obvious answer to such a  _mess_  would be  _Zim_ … and knowing this abomination it might actually be the case that this disgrace to our species somehow survived the Enforcer! I should have gone to that filthy ball of dirt personally to tear this pathetic Defect to pieces myself!”

The turret on his back swayed around and Set dashed away, the console he had used as cover was blown apart in a small explosion.

“Oh for crying out loud, this isn’t working at all!  _Purple_! Get your craven ass in here already!”

With growing dismay Set looked around. This was bad… more than bad! If Tork should not burst through this door in the next few seconds…

Another shot forced him out of cover ultimately and now he found himself facing both Tallest. Purple was aiming at him with a laser rifle, looking a lot more nervous than Red, even though the red eyed Tallest seemed to be much more confident of their victory now that his hatch twin had joined him. Set held his gun at the ready even though the situation was looking more and more unpromising and his Pak was sending another flood of warning signals to his neural system. The blood loss was growing more critical by the minute. Maybe he could taunt them into shooting the outer hull or the window, then the suction of the void would carry him away far enough to maybe get to safety… or he kept stalling for time he didn’t have.

    “Why don’t you just kill me? You’ve had more than enough opportunities. Or would you rather watch me bleed to death?” he growled between clenched teeth, and it was true. Why weren’t they just shooting him to bits? Both of them were outstanding marksmen and above all had him cornered at point blank range. Red didn’t even need to  _aim_  anymore at this distance! The Tallest just grinned again although it seemed a bit reluctant now.

    “Ah, but it is not that  _easy_ my dear Set, believe me.” He purred sardonically. “We need you  _alive_ , so to speak. Even though I’d love nothing more than to tear out your traitor-guts right here! Alas, the _Hive_ decided you are more valuable to us alive; we’ll just have to put you out of action first, then patch you back up and code you anew, restore the severed connections of your Pak to the Nexus and soon enough you’ll be our best and most efficient invader once again!”

Set narrowed his eyes at this, his mind suddenly awake and keen again. He had never heard the term  _Hive_  before, not even from his Tallest, and the very sound made his spine crawl.

    “The Hive? Nexus? What are you talking about?” He raised his antennae in curiosity, suddenly remembering his conversation with Jenna before his departure, which seemed to be an eternity ago, and her idea that the Paks might be synthetic organisms. Red’s eyes were beaming as he slowly floated towards Set.

    “The Hive is what keeps the Empire together, it is its origin… it  _is_  the Empire. And it controls all Irkens serving in its swarm that is connected to the Hive through its network, the Nexus.”

Now Set recoiled virtually aghast, something was clawing into his guts like cold fingers. He felt his Pak pulsing lightly at Red’s words, though it could’ve easily just been from all the warnings overwhelming his system.

    “I… I always thought  _you_  were the rulers of Irk…” he muttered faintly, backing away from the Tallest coming closer and closer.

Red shook his head with fanatic fervor while his weapon glowed menacingly behind his head.

    “Oooh, no, we are but humble servants of the Hive, deemed just worthy enough to execute its commands and expand the Hive’s influence throughout the galaxy! The Tallest have always been the keepers of the Hive and its official spokesmen.”

Set grew uneasy still, he knew the Tallest well enough and was aware that they would’ve never revealed something like this without a good reason, no matter who was facing them. What Red just told him was surely meant to be kept a secret from everyone but the Tallest themselves. And he didn’t like where this was going. Still, he couldn’t stop his curious mind; or maybe it was just the blood loss getting to his brain by now.

    “What are they? The Control Brains, the Paks… the Hive?” he panted strained and had to look up, Red was floating right in front of him now, towering over him by a good foot. Without any effort he wrested the shotgun from his hand and tossed it aside carelessly. Set recoiled until his back hit the window, tried to move past Red somehow but he grabbed his bleeding shoulder with an iron grip and the blazing pain almost forced him on his knees before his spider legs managed to catch him.

    “The Hive was the turn in our evolution… its grace granted our species to develop faster and further than any other species before us. It made us stronger, smarter and taller. The Paks are its descendants, the Pakrit its blood. We were connected with them so we might achieve greatness through them and they use us as vessels to extend their influence. When the Hive came to Irk it found the first Tallest and deemed him worthy enough to wield it. Through this bond our civilization grew to be what we are today, the mightiest race in the entire galaxy!”

Set was shaking, from the pain the Tallest’s claws caused in his already shattered body, but also from the revelation he was witnessing, this unthinkable truth he had never even considered. His suspicion from before had now grown into a horrible realization: that Jenna might have been right all along. The Resistance had to be told of this! But his hopes of getting out of here were dwindling more and more…

    “And… why are you telling me this now of all times?” he groaned in pain through gritted teeth and the grin returned upon Red’s face as he squeezed his shoulder with relish, now getting a barely muffled scream out of the invader after all.

    “Oh, come on now, I was expecting you to know by now what’s in store for you after this is over… you’re fighting a losing battle, Set, you’re little rebel friends will get crushed by the armada and after your recoding you won’t be able to remember a thing, not your treason, nor Jenna… only what a good, loyal invader you’ve  _always_  been. And then you will lead us to wherever Zim is hiding so I can finally squish him under my boot like the roach he is once and for all. Oh and of course you will destroy the Resistance’s base and bring me that cursed human of yours so I can take her to task personally… Ah, it will be such a pleasure to rape her before your eyes… or maybe I’ll leave her to Purp here and have a go at  _you_  first.” He rumbled with a cold laughter, grabbing his chin and levelling his barbed spider legs at his face. Set was rooted to the spot, noticing the opening the Tallest had left in his defenses, and got ready to fight to his last breath when a deafening gunshot tore through the siren’s howling and shot the turret right off Red’s back.

Purple screamed startled as Red went down, his Pak sparkling with electricity and smoldering through the hole the projectile had ripped into it, and rushed at his hatch twin’s side while Set used the opportunity to quickly dive behind one of the last remaining consoles.

Pressing against it he turned his head to see Tork standing in the doorway, a huge railgun propped up on his hip. His team poured into the room behind him, Set counted and realized that only four members were missing, among them the youngster he had pinned down in Tork’s quarters, another soldier was wounded and leaned heavily on Reliat, who looked a lot grimmer than just a few hours ago, and was covered over and over in crimson and blue blood.

Xakahr had taken cover behind them, Set could only recognize three of his remaining guards. He grinned on the inside; that had been a  _close_ one.

Suddenly a group of Irken soldiers came storming through the door to the Tallest’s chambers, their reinforcements no doubt, and a second gunfight broke out between the rebels and the Irkens.

Purple wheeled around in the erupting chaos and shot two, three quick shots himself, which had the rebels that went straight for him dodging to the side, before he grabbed the lifeless Red and floated towards one of the last escape pods at the end of the room. Two elite soldiers followed his retreat and brought up the rear.

Set sank against the console and allowed himself a short moment to clutch at his severed arm. He had barely any strength left to keep pressure on the devastating wound and the blood was already leaking through the seams of his suit's undercoat. The blood loss was making him dazed no matter how hard he tried to fight it; at least the Pakrit helped a bit against the pain.

Tork's men managed to kill the Irken soldiers one by one. When the smoke of their guns had dissolved the Tallest were gone.

    “You idiots, they got away! I’m surrounded by incompetent fools and cowards!” Xakahr roared outraged and stormed from his cover to walk up to Tork and yell at him but the Commander just gave his Admiral a contemptuous snarl and wiped sweat and blood from his face while eyeing the leader of the Resistance with a cold stare as he strode over to him.

   “Welp, a shame, I know. But to kill the Tallest here and now was only of secondary importance anyway, our true mission was another.”

At Xakahr’s confused frown Tork screwed his face into a played commiserative grin. “Oh, did I actually miss to inform you? Well, then I’ll tell you now… your tyranny ends here, Xakahr.” He said calmly and jerked up the railgun. Before anyone could react he pulled the trigger. Xakahr’s head along with his horns disappeared in a cloud of greyish brain mass and blood that engulfed the Commander like a spray of rain, his body hit the floor, twitching frantically.

A shocked shout came from the Admiral’s abiders and there was a brief scuffle, but Tork’s men took them down easily. The Commander ordered his team to secure the room and search the Bridge and the Tallest’s chambers before he walked over to Set, who was still clutching his arm with his face distorted in pain, waving for Reliat to follow.

The Irken hissed as the Ilenian messed with the wound to determine the severity of the injury.

Tork took the long range communicator he had hidden inside Reliat’s medic-pack and entered a code.

    “Calling all: This is Vort 1. Our main target is eliminated, time for operation  _Rebellion_. Take out all of Xakahr’s loyal supporters and return to the  _Vengeance_. I repeat: the Admiral is dead, start operation  _Rebellion_. You all know your targets. Vort 2: status report!” He waited for a second, then the leader of the fighter-fleet reported back.

    “Vort 1, this is Vort 2; copy that, sir. The Irkens are retreating, apparently they’re following one of the escape pods. Targets are taking up pursuit. Initiating operation  _Rebellion._  Nice work, Commander, or should I call you Admiral now?”

Tork shook his head with a repulsed expression.

    “Commander is fine with me, I take no stock in empty titles, and neither those with such a bitter taste to them at that. Report back to me when all targets have been neutralized or yielded, I’ll contact the  _Vengeance_ , let’s see if we can find some captured rebels on this boat that have a longing for home. Tork out.”

Set exhaled relieved and let his head sink back again, fortunately none of the other pilots had noticed that he had reactivated the long range comm of Tork’s trusted fighter pilots so that the Commander could coordinate his military putsch.

    “Well Commander, I hope you enjoyed your sightseeing tour.” He said between clenched teeth and Tork gave him a crooked grin and chortled.

    “Very funny, invader. This ship is a goddamn labyrinth! It’s hard to believe that one of my people designed it. Are you gonna be alright?” The Vort asked in turn and Set nodded despite the vertigo it caused him.

    “Just… scratches.” He panted, “There’s something else we have to worry about: I’ve come to known something disturbing, Commander. We should head back to base as soon as possible to plan our next moves.  _Ow_ , watch out, dammit!” he snarled at Reliat and the Ilenian furrowed his brows as he turned towards Tork.

    “I’m afraid these are no scratches, Commander. His left arm got severed by the shot through his shoulder. It's barely connected to any tissue, I’ll have to operate right here.” He stated sober and Tork’s eyes widened.

    “How bad?” he just wanted to know and Reliat shook his head. Set growled and wanted to push the young doctor off of him when he realized what he had in mind.

    “Oh no, like  _hell_ you will! This is… nothing!” He cursed crudely in Irken when Tork commanded him to remove his armor and he was able to look at his arm for the first time then. A stream of blood gushed over the floor once the suit had retracted and some of the soldiers groaned in horror. Due to the cut blood supply Set’s arm had turned almost black and now even he had to admit that the odds of surviving were anything but in his favor.

    “This doesn’t look good at all…” Reliat muttered lost in thoughts and unpacked his scalpels and tools. Tork gulped down a retch with strain and looked worried from him to Set.

    “Can you patch him up?” he asked tensed and looked over his shoulder when one of his men waved anxiously at him. He followed the Steelhunter into the chamber of the Tallest and froze upon seeing the giant, red lit screen on which a countdown of Irken numbers under a viciously grinning smiley gradually decreased. Quickly he hurried back to Reliat and bent down to him.

“Alright, kid… can you patch him up in  _one hour_?” he grunted darkly and Reliat flinched in terror as he realized what his Commander was implying with this. His hands trembled briefly but then he nodded determined and rolled up the sleeves of his coat. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And this is the end of Xakahr, wooohoo xD 
> 
> sadly that's the only positive thing about this :B
> 
> see you guys next week!!


	65. Hunters and Prey

###  **\- 25 Hunters and Prey –**

  _One hour later – Home Base of the Resistance – Somewhere in the desert outskirts_

 

    “Would you care to tell me  _now_  what exactly that plan of yours is? It’s getting dark already and I don’t really fancy running into the Zar'tak out here, not when my suit is as protective as a bamboo mat right now!” Jenna groused, looking over her shoulder for the umpteenth time this day. Car stopped in her steps without a warning and she all but bumped into the Vortian.

    “What the hell is a  _bamboo mat_?” she asked confused and Jenna shook her head in frustration. Since they had left the rebel city far behind them she had been asking Car where they were headed and why the guy owing her that big favor had to live this far outside the city, where nobody would hear them scream. But her friend had kept her in the dark up to now, about literally everything, and by now it was making Jenna really  _angry_!

When she realized that she flinched guilt-ridden and tried to control her breathing to calm down. Back on the  _Rebellion_ , in Tork’s quarter, she had been angry as well and the next second she had lost her mind and tried to kill him and Set. She didn’t want to risk a similar situation out here of all places.

    “Ugh… I’m turning into the  _Hulk_.” She muttered darkly and again Car stopped to cast her a half confused, half irritated gaze for not getting what the human was talking about.

But then her face brightened up and she ran the last few meters towards the cliff Jenna had almost fell from two days ago. She cocked a brow.

“Wait, don’t tell me that guy has a secret base at the bottom of that ravine! I  _knew_  something had to be down there besides mist and rubble!” Jenna called out, coming to a skittering halt next to Car. She shrugged.

    “Well, not exactly a  _secret_  base. But my dad told him to build his workshop someplace outside the city where he couldn’t cause any damage. His experiments tend to be a tad too volatile for my father’s taste.” She replied.

    “Oh.” Jenna just did and swallowed. Great, yet another crazy recluse. It was almost fateful.

“Alright… and how do we get down there? No offense; I could make it even though my suit’s that broken. But you don’t even have a sui-“ She got no chance to finish her sentence because Car simply jumped down into the black nothingness. Jenna gave a startled shout and wanted to grab her, but had to clutch to the edge to not fall down herself. Speechless with horror she waited with racing heart for the awful sound of an impact and stared into the abyss.

All of a sudden Car’s face appeared right before hers and she screamed out again, jerking away from the cliff. The loud guffaw that followed her shriek made it quite clear to her that Car had  _not_ jumped to her death, and she pulled her hands away from her face.

    “You should see your face! Price-less!” Car snickered and grinned from horn to horn while Jenna shot her such a devastating glare that her eyes stung.

“Alright, alright, I’ve had my fun with you… come down, you can’t fall.” She reached out for her and Jenna slid inch to inch over the edge until she fell. A short squeak escaped her lips but when her boots hit  _metal_ on the same level as Car’s hooves her eyes grew round with fascination.

    “What the…” she gasped and felt around with her toes, but all around her the vertigo-inducing chasm was covered by the invisible metal flooring, making it seem like they were flaoting mid-air.

    “My uncle calls it  _Hallucinum_ , like it’s some kind of freaky new element he discovered. But actually it’s just a self-invented nano-tech material he paints over the metal. It produces a hologram once it’s hooked up to a computer. Pretty cool, right?” Car explained proudly and Jenna nodded, before she realized something and shot her a stunned glance.

    “Wait… your  _uncle_? Is his name Trook by any chance!?” she blurted out and Car agreed with wide eyes.

    “Yeah… hey, how do you know his name?” she asked a bit gobsmacked and now it was Jenna’s turn to grin.

    “I met him on Free-Haven! He sold me a double-clocked power core for SIR when Set sent me running an errand.” She stopped for a moment, the memory of that day returning to her. “That was shortly after we escaped from the  _Massive_ … the aliens there tried to kill me when my disguise malfunctioned and were chasing me through the alleys. Your uncle saved my life, and he repaired the hydraulic splint on my knee.” When she thought about their encounter she also remembered that she hadn’t told him anything about Set, or the true reason she had wanted that power core and she immediately got a queasy conscience. She had lied to him about so many things… to meet him again after all that had happened… it was bound to turn into a disaster.

    “Are you okay?” Car asked with her head cocked to the side and Jenna nodded quickly.

    “Yeah, everything’s fine, just... still a bit dizzy. For how long has he been here?” she changed the subject and the Vortian shrugged while walking along the metal platform, leading down the side of the cliff in a ramp.

    “He arrived only a few cycles ago; he comes and goes as it pleases him, mostly he shows up when he has to disappear from a planet because the Irkens are frisking it. Don’t tell me you didn’t notice that his shop has literally thrusters on its roof!”

Jenna laughed astonished and negated.  

“Oh, you probably took those for some sort of wacky, alien- _chimneys_ , I gotcha.” Car twitted her and the human stuck out her tongue.

They didn’t have to walk far down the ravine’s wall until they came upon a metal door, which looked almost exactly like the surrounding bedrock on first glance, but opened even before Car had raised a hand.

    “Huh, so he installed the cameras now after all.” She mumbled lost in thoughts and stilted ahead. Jenna followed her with some distance and was still trying to figure out how she should explain Trook her lie and everything else she hadn’t told him.

The sound of tools messing with metal grew louder and Jenna raised her eyes when they entered a massive cave that was illuminated by big spotlights. Trook stood with his back to the door in front of an Irken workbench, dismantling the remains of a small robot. When they stepped closer Jenna saw the burn marks around a big gaping hole and faded stains of violet blood. Her shocked sound made the Vortian veer around.

    “Oh god!  _SIR_?!” she gasped out and felt a wave of nausea crashing over her. Car grabbed her shoulder, giving it a calming squeeze, and turning her away from the sight.

    “I’m sorry - sorry - I totally forgot about that. My uncle is obsessed with SIR units at the moment and tries to get his hands on anything that has to do with them. I believe he’s looking for some sort of frequency.” She explained softly and Jenna recoiled again in guilt, after all she had used that idea as an excuse to get that power core. Trook approached them, pulling a pair of safety goggles from his eyes, a disbelieving expression on his mauve face.

    “Jenna?! Is that really you?” And then he laughed out in surprise and quickly yanked the thick glove from his right hand with his teeth to grab her hand and shake it. The gesture was so human like that Jenna’s mouth opened in bafflement. Trook winked at her. “I've met another human before, remember?” He laughed again and looked her over from head to toe.

“Look at you! All without your splint and eye-patch! And as I’ve been told that’s Nemon’s handy work. Well then, seems like I can now officially welcome you to the Resistance, eh? Car already told me all about you.”

Jenna gulped, her heart leaping into her throat like it wanted to escape her body much as she wanted to escape this situation.

    “A- all?” she croaked, choking and, to her utter surprise, a gentle expression of sympathy softened the Vortian’s rough features.

    “Ah, it’s alright, kid; I know how hard it must’ve been for you… I once was a slave on an Irken space station myself. I won’t bug you with any questions about how’s and why’s. But I’d like to meet this Set guy one day, I hope he can tell me more about this SIR unit of his.” He put her at ease indulgently and Jenna gestured towards SIR’s scorched frame without looking at it.

    “B- But I only made the story about the frequency up, so why…” she raised her hands puzzled. Trook grinned.

    “I know, but I gotta hand it to ya, that wasn’t such a bad idea at all. There really has to be something that can knock out these tin heads without having to fight them up close and personally. And I’ve gotten some pretty astonishing insights out of this one.” He paused and shot her a pitiful glance. “I’m so sorry about what happened to Feorn. Everyone here knew him and respected him for what he did in service of the Resistance.”

Jenna nodded thankfully but felt miserable at the same time because she hadn’t thought about him with everything that was happening recently.

    “So,  _uncle_ …” Car interrupted and crossed her arms in front of her chest. “I believe you still owe me for playing this robot into your hands.”

Trook nodded eagerly and opened his arms in a generous manner.

    “Certainly! Pick whatever you like, child, I got a few nice new toys for sale! Just tell me when you’ve found something you like.”

Jenna looked around and noticed that the cave’s walls were nearly plastered with weapons, tools and all sorts of unknown equipment and doohickeys. But Car shook her head.

    “Actually, I already know what we need: two Irken holo-bracelets, an EMP hand grenade and two pairs of electro-magnetic fetters designed for Zar'taks.”

Trook narrowed his eyes and crossed his arms, and only now did Jenna notice the resemblance to Tork: both had the same piercing glare when they got serious.

    “Young lady…” he growled. “What did you  _do_ now?”

Car waved her arms around in defense, pointing accusingly at Jenna.

    “Hey,  _I_ just got dragged into this mess! It’s all Jenna’s fault that Xakahr put this hit of a Zar'tak on her!” she protested and Jenna wheeled around to her friend with her mouth open, scandalized.

    “ _What_?! It’s not my fault your leader is a crazy tyrant!  _I’m_  the victim here!” she revolted and Trook raised his hands to calm them both down.

    “Whoa,  _easy_ , you lads are giving me a splitting headache already... are you trying to tell me that Admiral Xakahr hired a Zar'tak as an assassin to kill you?” he looked at Jenna and she gave a feeble nod. Trook nodded slowly. “That’s… actually darn clever, I gotta hand it to him. Even though I have absolutely no idea how he managed to talk one into it. But the better question is: why are you not dead yet? Or did he set him on you today?”

Both women shook their heads.

    “No, he’s stalking me for two cycles now. He even showed up in front of my quarters but someone disturbed him, just as before in the MedBay. Nemon told us the same thing, that a Zar'tak would’ve killed me by now… yet I have no doubt he's out to kill me… I can feel it.” Jenna muttered and rubbed over the cracked chest piece of her armor. She felt indeed like something was threatening her, even now. Had the Zar'tak maybe even followed them here and was now hiding somewhere in the metal framework supporting the cave’s ceiling above their heads?

Trook looked at her for a moment and then gave a slow nod.

    “Okay, I believe you. What’s your plan, Car?”

Car gave an evil grin.

    “We know he’s after Jenna and he knows that we know. Which is why he will now only show up when she’s alone since he fled last time I showed up with my gun. So we can assume that he doesn’t want any witnesses or additional casualties. The plan is simple: Jenna and I are going to switch bodies.” She revealed her plan with a pleased grin and Trook snorted grimly.

    “So that’s what the bracelets are for. Alright, and what do you need the  _grenade_ for?” Then he slapped his forehead and called out: “Ah, I get it, you want to catch him, take his powers out! Very smart, but I’m afraid he won’t spill anything about Xakahr’s plans.”

Jenna had thought the same thing. And it was unlikely Car would be able to keep the Zar'tak in control for a longer time. Sooner or later he would break free again.

The Vortian’s expression got clouded.

    “I don’t know yet what I’m going to do once I’ve captured him… couldn’t Nemon just put him into cryostasis?” she proposed hesitant but her uncle grimaced at the suggestion.

    “And how are you going to explain that to Xakahr’s proxy? Without a direct order of the Admiral or a Commander you can’t just arrest members of the Resistance, not even if it’s a Zar'tak. And I’m not sure Nemon would be one to get coaxed into something like this.” He pointed out whereat Jenna gave a resolute shake of her head.

    “I’m sure he would. He hates Xakahr and would probably kill him personally given the chance.” She blurted out, remembering the furious anger Nemon had displayed after she'd woken up in the MedBay, but Trook raised an eyebrow at her.

    “You should be more careful with what you mouth. I wouldn’t want the good doc to get pulled into this mess.” He reproached her and Car snorted.

    “Her big mouth is the very  _reason_ she ended up in this mess.” The Vortian smirked and nudged Jenna’s side playfully with a sturdy elbow. She groaned in pain and palmed over her still healing ribs.

    “Thanks Car, as always you’re so  _gentle_ to me.” The human hissed agonized and her friend smiled.

    “I do what I can. So what do you say, you got the stuff?” she turned back to her uncle, and he sighed defeated.

    “Yeah, I got what you need. Wait here.” With this he vanished in the back part of the cave. Car hopped on one of the empty workbenches while Jenna wandered around the workshop curiously to take a closer look at the odd gadgets and projects. She finally came to stop in front of a big tube-like machine. Something on it struck her as strangely familiar. Then she recognized it and gave a surprised but delighted sound. Car came over to her and scrutinized the tube.

    “What’s that? Far as I can tell it’s Irken, but that’s it.” She stated and Jenna nodded.

    “It  _is_ ; that’s the same machine Set used to construct this suit for me!” Sad, she looked down her shattered armor. “Do you think your uncle is familiar enough with this thing to make me a new one?”   
  
Car wanted to shrug but by then Trook was back already and placed a box on his workbench.

    “Well, if you’d be willing to part from your old one for a second, I could analyze the construction plan and start building a new one, yes.” He said pleased and after a moment of hesitation Jenna took the belt from her hips. Fascinated the Vortian inspected the armor and opened the machine to test the belt’s mechanics. The busted armor snapped with a crunching sound from the pouches in the belt and hardened into dense plates. Despite the seemingly fluid transformation the plates were all covered in spider webs of cracks and fissures. Jenna flinched at the sight. She had up to now never seen the full extent of the damage it had taken from her fight against Lenka.

Trook started the computer, typing away on the keyboard. After a few seconds he turned his attention back to them.

“I can make you a new suit, but it will take a while for me to get used to the process. Do you want to keep the old one until then?” he asked and she nodded quickly. No matter how battered her suit was she wouldn’t walk out there without any protection at all.

Meanwhile Car had searched the box and hummed contented.

    “Looks good, thanks a bunch uncle! I can’t wait to get my hands on that scumbag.” She rubbed her hands together bustling and Jenna thought seeing her horns quiver with excitement as she hopped from one stilted leg to the other. But Trook gave her a stern look.

    “Please be careful Car. I could… I would never forgive myself if something happened to you out there. And your father would kill me if he… if he should lose you as well.”

Immediately the mood shifted: Car’s face grew dark and she took the box from the workbench, about to leave. Trook looked back at her sad, rubbing his horns. “ _Promise_ me you watch out after another, alright?” he tried again and the Vortian femme gave him a stiff nod in turn.

    “Sure… are you coming, Jenna?” she grunted curtly and stalked off. Jenna shot Trook a confused glimpse, but then she smiled and thanked him before hurrying after her friend.

She was almost out of the cave and Jenna had trouble keeping up with her while trying to wrap the belt around her hips again.

     “Car, wait up!” she pleaded and to her astonishment she stopped indeed. Quickly she closed in on her and took a breather. “Are you alright? What was he talking about?” she asked confounded but Car averted her gaze pointedly. Since she obviously didn’t want to talk about it Jenna just nodded and decided to leave it at that. She wasn’t one to chase something like that up.

Silent they walked up the ramp and headed back for the rebel base. Jenna cast another glance into the ravine; it was still absolutely amazing that you really didn’t see anything of the hidden gangway. Then she walked through the desert after Car. After a while she took the heavy box from her to carry it the rest of the way, even though her ribs were aching already. The night wasn’t as dark as those on Earth had been. On this planet, the thin atmosphere allowed the stars to brighten up the night with their lights, the arms of the Milky Way galaxy stretching like giant arches over the firmament, much brighter than any view of it on Earth could ever be. The desert was cold and lifeless, whatever wildlife the planet might have, it didn’t show itself. They walked beside each other, the lights of the city almost dimmed out by the glare of the stars.

    “He was talking about my mother.” Car said into the silence and Jenna felt a painful sting in her chest that wasn’t her ribs for once. No wonder she had reacted like that back in the cave. But she said nothing, Car was gazing into the distance. “Two years ago she was on a reckon mission without my father to find out why the Irkens made single members of different races disappear. Not to put them into their factories or their prisons, they just vanished without a trace, save for the reports of where they’d gone missing. She was following the tracks of an Enforcer all the way to Irk when she was caught in an ambush. The ship she had been tracking down had noticed her and lead her to a space station where she was cornered. Since then we’ve lost any contact to her. I don’t even know if she’s even alive anymore.” She finished bland.

    “I’m sorry.” Jenna murmured shaken and shot Car a scrutinizing side glance but the Vortian was hiding her feelings all too well.

    “I hate getting reminded of it… to have all these questions in my head again, not knowing if she’s dead or… still somewhere out there, and needs my help.”

    “That’s why you watch the vids from the arena fights…” She said bewildered, remembering how she’d judged Car and Reliat for it back then. That had been fifteen cycles ago. Jenna had all but a guess as to how long she was actually away from Earth but if you calculated roughly it could easily be a month by now. A whole month. She stopped and Car turned around to her, surprised.

    “Jenna? What’s wrong?” she asked confused and saw the tears. “Oh now… I’m sorry I made you sad with this.”

But Jenna shook her head and handed her the box so she could wipe the tears off her face.

    “It’s not because of your mother… I- I just realized now how long  _I’ve_  been away now… how long my family misses me already.” She sniffled and raised her head, glaring at the cold stars. “It’s only because of this war that I can’t go back… I want my life back, Car. Maybe not the one I had on Earth, but I want to feel save again and I will do anything it takes to stop this goddamn Empire!” she hissed with shaking voice. Car gave her a crooked grin.

    “That’s nice of you to say. But this war has been raging for so many years now… I don’t think you’ll make that much of a difference to it.” She replied cynically and knocked on the lid of the box. “You should be glad if this here works out in our favor.”

The human nodded, her heart heavy and longing.

    “Yeah… you’re probably right.”      

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yep, you read right, it's on hour after Tork's team discovered the countdown, so the Massive's blown up by now~
> 
> I other news, get ready for some hologram, emp bomb, catching action x>  
> Also yaaay, I love it when old characters show up again :)
> 
> Late update today, my laptop decided it was a good moment to have a stroke on me *shakes fist at screen* Do that again and you won't get an update for a month you bastard!


	66. Hunters and Prey - Pt.2

###  **\- 25 Hunters and Prey –**

#### Part 2

  
Back in Jenna's quarter Car got to unpack the box and charge the hologram bracelets. Jenna felt strangely lost in the big, empty room and wandered around until her gaze fell upon her backpack. She realized that she had never truly emptied it out ever since she brought it with her from Earth. But to be honest she was afraid of seeing her few belongings laid out in front of her; the piteous scraps that remained of twenty-two years, everything she had managed to stuff into the backpack beside her iPod.

Suddenly she smacked her forehead with the flat of her hand that the slapping sound made Car look up from her work startled.

    "Oh my god, I'm so _stupid_!" Jenna called out and grabbed her iPod that was lying on the only table in the room. Car gave an amused snort.

    "A _fault_ confessed and so on…" she mumbled snickering and her friend nodded in agreement.

    "Just this once you're right, Car." She laughed in relief. "I _do_ know very well how long I've been gone! This bad boy has a fricking _calendar_ and I've only just remembered it!"

With her hands trembling she called up the device's internal calendar and had to calculate for a few seconds. She had been abducted on the sixth. No, hold on, the _seventh_ of August. Jenna clapped a hand over her mouth and had to choke a retch.

    "What? What's wrong?" Car asked scared when she saw her pale face.

    "I… I've been away from home for 29 days… almost a whole month." She felt her knees impending to give way under her so she sat down on the edge of her bed. The Vortian palmed over her back surprisingly gentle, looking down on the iPod's display.

     "What does that say?" she wanted to know and pointed on the line that stated the name of the month.

    "September… where I'm from it's going to be autumn very soon… the trees will shed their colorful leaves, the Canada geese will fly south to spend the winter in a warmer climate. Maine is so breathtakingly beautiful in autumn. Our house is right next to a big lake and in winter it freezes over so thick that you can skate on it and fish right on the ice with a nice fire burning in a shack beside you… oh _god_ …" she exhaled shakily and buried her face in her hands.

Car rubbed her trembling shoulders, scooting over to lean against her.

    "I know how you feel… I haven't seen Vort since my childhood. I can barely remember what it was like there." she said saddened and Jenna looked up in confusion.

    "Don't you have photos? Pictures of your home, I mean." She asked confounded and Car nodded.

    "Yeah, we do, but they don't speak to me… for a Vortian it's important that more than one sense is activated than just the visual sense to really stir a memory of a place and to make us feel." She explained to Jenna and she nodded sorrowful.

    "I see…" Then she reached into her backpack after all and pulled out the photos she'd taken from her room. The one with her parents and her sister, one of her dog, the big Dane Tippet, and the photo with Carly, Lauren and her all sitting on the broad hood of Lauren's truck. When she was gazing at the last one it almost made her cry again but she smiled.

    "Oh!" Car cooed and pointed at her dog. "That looks cute! What is that?"

A hole while long the two of them talked about their families, their old homes and how their home planets differed. Yet soon enough they grew tired and crawled under the thin blanket, the lights turned off, and talked on quietly in the darkness until they fell asleep exhausted.

   
  


The next morning Car woke her earlier than usually, she wanted to calibrate the hologram bracelets before work and talk the rough plan through in case they had to set in into action today already. Jenna was way too drained, tired and moody to get thrown out of bed earlier than necessary even though it was meant to make her life a whole lot saver, and already reached for her pack of cigarettes to blow of some steam, literally. Then she remembered that she didn't have the Synthesizer at her disposal anymore and got even angrier at the thought of having to ration out her cigarettes yet again.

    "I don't suppose you have an Irken Matter Synthesizer lying around here somewhere?" she groused and lit one nevertheless. Car was in a mood just as bad as her own, if not worse, and snorted at her.

    "Oh _sure_ we do, it's not like those things cost a fucking _fortune_. You've got some nerves… pretty shitty that your boyfriend isn't stinking rich anymore, hm?" she smirked nastily and waved around with one of the scratched hologram bracelets. Jenna just puffed out a cloud of smoke and flipped her the bird whereat the Vortian just frowned in irritated confusion. Jenna however grinned pleased before yet another convulsion raged through her abdomen like the literal wages of sin, making her groan out. At least her period was almost over. Hurray!

When she had finished her cigarette both of them put on a bracelet and let them scan their bodies before they swapped them and activated the hologram. Jenna's jaw fell when she was suddenly sitting in front of herself, seeing her whole reflection for the first time in ages, thanks to the lack of full-body mirrors among the Resistance. Although it had only been a month, it had definitely left its marks on her. She had gotten thin and almost lean, her beautiful summer tan was completely gone, displaced by an unhealthy paleness. A fine maze of bright scars had remained around her right eye, and her nose was covered by a dark, yellow and green blotch, left from the healing fracture, but at least she wouldn't keep a hump from it. Her hair was a lot longer and tousled, and the alien washing solutions had taken the shine from it.

She felt a painful sting thinking that Set had seen her like that, or Feorn for that matter.

    "Shit…" she uttered stupefied and watched how her twin screwed her face in a sympathetic way.

    "That bad, huh? If it's any consolation, I still think you look just as weird as the first day." Car commented quietly and inspected herself, that being Jenna, just as thoroughly. "Ugh, my skin looks awful, I could really use some _real_ sun about now, not that synthetic shit those lamps provide."

Jenna laughed out.

    "Yeah, me too."  

Both of them were more than relieved when they finally deactivated the holograms to tend to something much more pressing: how would they take out the Zar'tak?

    "Alright, since we don't know when he's going to show up again we'll have to activate our holograms right after work and hope for the best. We'll have to split up for him to make his move, but not too obvious or he'll suspect something's off. The best thing would be a situation like yesterday when he was suddenly standing in the hallway, while I was going to get my gun. But how are we going to set it up?" Car began and Jenna thought about it for a moment before her eyes widened.

     "The trash! Most of the waste from the MedBay gets thrown into the shaft but the rest has to get burned, right? I'm going to take out the trash, as you, and make my way to the incinerator plant. You wait as me in front of the MedBay, like yesterday. When he shows up you lead him away from the station, into a deserted hallway, take him out with the EMP grenade and handcuff him! After that's done we meet back at the station and put him in the cryochamber, alright?"

Car nodded excited, she couldn't have planned this out better herself. But then Jenna remembered something she hadn't thought of yet. "Wait, what about the shockwave? The EMP could probably be enough to fry the entire station! Can we risk that?" she asked shocked but Car put her off casually.

    "Nah, the big machines all have emergency power cells based on Meekrob technology, they can't get fried by an EMP. As for the rest… well, lamps are easy to repair. No, we have to pull this through!"

Jenna nodded determined and they made their way towards the MedBay. This time she didn't care for the distrustful stares the aliens they passed shot her. She was way too nervous to notice.

Nemon greeted them joyfully, busy as ever, and they got to work right away. They had decided to not let the doctor in on their plan so he wouldn't get charged with accessoriness in case they got caught.

Work was dragging on and on even though there was so much to do that Jenna could barely keep the pace of the incoming samples she had to analyze. It really was way easier working on a ship with 500 crew members than having a whole city with multiple ten thousand inhabitants. But somehow she managed to pass the day somewhat successfully without getting too distracted by what could happen later.

After their shift was over Nemon left the MedBay to attend a meeting of the collective doctors on the planet and Car gave Jenna, who had been cleaning her workspace for the third time by now, a nod - it was time.

With the trash tucked under her arm Car left the MedBay and walked down the hallway towards the incinerator plant at the end of the wing. A moment later Jenna came out of the Bay as well, typing away on her Chronometer. The Zar'tak hadn't shown up yet. She looked around, apparently disinterested before lowering her eyes back onto her Chronometer. After another five minutes she grew uneasy. Where was he? He'd have to be watching her, right?

Jenna was playing with the thought of aborting the mission altogether and look for Car when she turned around and froze.

There he was, standing right around the corner, the green eyes glowing eerily like radioactive fuel rods. She suppressed a shudder and took a step back. The Zar'tak cocked his head to the side, but waited still. When Jenna drew back further he took a first step towards her and she all but jumped from the start. His movements were like those of a predator, sneaking up on his prey ready to jump and the green eyes never flicked away from her for one second. She felt a sudden rush of panic coming over her, turning on her heels to walk towards the door to the lab, but found it was locked. With her heart racing she glimpsed over her shoulder anxiously and saw the Zar'tak coming closer and closer, the eyes glowing brightly like a ring of green fire on his face, and she knew, that he was keeping the door locked with his powers. A strange tingling sensation spread in the back of her neck and Jenna wheeled around and ran down the hallway, away from the scary alien. As she turned around a corner she saw from the corner of her eye that he was already following her, his paw-like feet made no sound on the floor. She took another turn, slowing down a bit, she couldn't let him lose her! But when she saw over her shoulder again she realized that just that had apparently happened already.

    "Dammit!" Jenna cursed and stopped to wait for the Zar'tak to come stalking around the corner. Yet still there was nothing. "Oh for _fuck's_ sake!"

Suddenly the tingling flared up in her nape that it felt almost like burning and she shot around. A startled shout escaped her and she nearly tripped over her own feet as she tried to recoil from him. The Zar'tak, who had appeared right behind her out of thin air, his shape still blurred from teleporting, reached out for her, his green eyes seemed to bulge out their sockets as he stared at her, the barely visible mouth opened and closed as though he was whispering something. Jenna tried to avert her gaze, wheel around and haul ass but she couldn't move. The hand closed in on her face, closer and closer, the tingling was now _inside_ her head and swell to a paralyzing buzzing. It was as if she'd turned into stone.

When the tips of his broad fingers touched her face she screamed out and remembered _who_ she was and what she had to do.

    "Eat _this_ you asshole!" Car roared and threw the EMP grenade on the ground before her feet. The fist-sized metal casing burst open and a glaring blue flash blinded her for a few seconds.

When she opened her eyes again it was pitch black but a pained sound right in front of her told her she had been successful. The Zar'tak went down with a dull thud and she pulled out her Chronometer, which was still functioning thanks to Meekrob technology, to have at least a little light. With a satisfied grin, but still breathing heavily from fear, Car looked down on the unconscious Zar'tak and typed a quick message for Jenna that she was out of danger and could turn off her hologram now. Car's own hologram-bracelet had been taken out by the impluse and she took it off to thrust it into her overall's pocket. Then she hunched up before the alien and took the electromagnetic handcuffs her uncle had given them; other than normal electric cuffs those had four hoops, fitting perfectly around the four slender wrists of a Zar'tak.

She had just closed them when he was already stirring again, lifting his head numbed. Car cursed angrily and wanted to simply bash his head when the green eyes snapped open and he stared at her in disbelief. The eyes gave off their creepy glow, illuminating the hallway, but apart from that nothing happened and the glow soon faded. The buzzing in her head was gone and the Zar'tak seemed to realize that he couldn't use his telekinetic powers for the time being since he sat up and gestured wildly with his cuffed hands.

    "What the hell do you want? Are you begging me for mercy you _traitor_?! Tsk, you should've thought of that _before_ Xakahr hired you to kill Jenna! Just wait until my father and the Irken come back… oh, believe me you don't want _him_ to come back." Car went silent when the Zar'tak shook his head fiercely, pointing at her. "What? Are you telling me you meant to kill _me_? Hm, even if, that doesn't change anything about the fact that I _caught_ you, does it?"

Again, he negated and she thought seeing a trace of despair in his hectic gestures. She gave an irritated groan.

"You do know I have no idea what you're trying to say? Can you really not talk at all?"   
  
Suddenly the creature on the floor wreathed, eyes closes tightly as if he was trying to concentrate with all his strength. Then the Zar'tak's eyes snapped open again, blazing like ghost lights and the tingling was back in her nape with full force, as if a giant hand was grabbing her. The alien opened his mouth widely, filled with razor sharp teeth, wider than she'd ever thought possible and Car flinched back terrified when the buzz in her head turned into a loud, shrieking scream that almost made her faint and she uttered a pained cry.

    _"Vo- Voooorrrt… a- assssasssinnn!"_

 

The real Jenna exhaled relieved when she read the text Car had sent to her Chronometer and turned off the hologram. Quickly she ran back to the MedBay, the hallway dark, save for the emergency lights in the ground, and wanted to open the door but found it locked. Confused she already wanted to knock when she heard someone stepping around the corner and turned around. She saw the flash of light reflecting in the glass of safety goggles when he moved and Jenna recognized the Vortian tech, who had come here yesterday to ask Nemon something. She smiled at him and pointed at the door.

    "I think the door is malfunctioning." Jenna explained, faking a confused tone in her voice to not give away that she knew what really happened to it. The Vort looked at her and smiled widely, shaking his head, the big glasses of his goggles flashing.

    "No, looks more like someone set off an electromagnetic impulse in this wing, the whole station's power is down. I was just in the area when the lights went out all of a sudden. Nearly tripped over my own darn feet. Crazy, huh? Stuff like that seems to happen a lot around here lately." The Vort quipped and she nodded understanding. He seemed to have noticed the Zar'tak's presence as well. "Oh, while you're already here: I could use some help getting the power up and running again. You look like you're pretty handy. So what do you say?" he asked her and she nodded, shrugging. The Zar'tak was caught, and they would have to get the power up anyway to get him into cryostasis.

The tech gave her a beaming smile. "Hey, thanks! Here, open the control panel at the door and I tell you what to do." He prompted her and pointed at the small case in the wall next to the door's controls. Jenna turned around. She opened the small hatch and listened attentively to the tech telling her all about the complicated door-controls.

Then she remembered were she'd seen him the first time. In the MedBay, right after the Zar'tak had tried to attack her. And hadn't Car seen a Vortian tech startling the Zar'tak the night in front of her door? She paused, trying to recall the moment after the lights had gone back on in the MedBay the first time.

_There was a power loss, apparently some of the electrical workers tried again to improve the power distribution in this sector. One of the fuses blew, sorry about the noise. I hope nobody was hurt running around in the darkness._

That's what he had said to them before shooting the Zar'tak a glare. But… had it really been distrust in his eyes or rather… anger?

Jenna wanted to turn around, opening her mouth to confront him, and the heavy wrench he had been hiding behind his back came crashing down on the back of her head and the flash of pain threw her into the darkness.

               

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WELP
> 
> so much for that plan, and Xakahr isn't even alive anymore to celebrate 
> 
> sorry, no big commentary on this chapter, I'm exhausted and I have to work tomorrow and I don't wannaaaaa ;-;
> 
> but hey, as always, tell me what you think, tell me what kind of monster I am x'DD
> 
> btw I watched Star Wars an hour ago, it good son *-*


	67. Intentions

###  **\- 26 Intentions -**

 

_A few moments later – Planet of the Resistance - ???_

Jenna came to with a startled intake of air and tried to open her eyes, but an unexpected obstruction was pressing against her eyelids and she flinched at the sensation. After another second of catching her anxious breath she forced her eyes open despite the barrier but the darkness stayed, so she wanted to raise her hands to pull off whatever was covering her face, but she found that they were bound on her back. Now panic rose in her, cold and dreadful. What was going on, where was she?

Then she felt the headache and groaned under her breath, convulsing. With the pain her memories came flooding back as well in cruel clarity: someone had knocked her out from behind! The Zar'tak…

    “Shit…”

Startled Jenna stopped in her writhing and pricked up her ears, holding her breath. That was a _Vortian_ voice. That reminded her, the Vortian tech had been with her when the Zar'tak attacked! Had he been carried off as well to not leave any witnesses behind?

    “Hello?” she called out timidly and heard quick steps approaching. Then something hit her in the side with enough force to make her scream in agony as her ribcage went up in white flames.

    “Shut _up_!” the Vortian hissed full of hatred and kicked her leg too for good measures. “Shut the _fuck_ up or you’re going to regret it!” Then the steps receded again and she heard him pacing back and forth in the distance. Frozen from pain and fright Jenna just stayed where she was, leaning against a cold wall and tried not to move a single muscle, afraid of getting kicked again at the smallest provocation. She was confused and dismayed, had the Vortian kidnapped her and not the Zar'tak? But suddenly she remembered in horror that he had been present on every single incident with the Zar'tak, even when the dark alien had waited for her in the hallway. _He said he wanted to talk to Nemon, yeah right,_ she thought, grinding her teeth as she realized who had really been the culprit all along. How the hell could she have been so blind?! Of course Xakahr would rather trust a Vortian than a mysterious alien with questionable alliances he probably couldn’t even stand! But why wasn’t she already dead then? What were his intentions?

Her heart was beating in her chest like a caged bird, making her ribs throb with every beat. If she could only reach the buckle of her belt… fortunately the tech hadn’t taken it from her but to activate the suit she would have to press both pressure points.

    “Dammit, why d- doesn’t he answer?! _Fuck_!” the Vort shrieked frustrated and Jenna tensed her muscles cautionary, in case he was like to kick her in his anger. Yet instead, he hit something else, something that clanked and rattled, the sound echoing back. Jenna furrowed her brows under the blindfold. Where were they? She didn’t know any room in the city with an echo like that, it had to be a vast room and empty. Maybe somewhere in the city’s underground?

She heard him muttering outraged and gathered all her courage, she _had_ to find out what he intended to do with her.

    “Xakahr is dead, that’s why he’s not calling! T- the Tallest meant to kill him for a long time, they were already anticipating a-“, she was suddenly yanked up by her hair and stifled her scream with a hiss.

    “I told you… to shut your fucking trap! You should be glad that I have different orders, otherwise I’d kill you right here you stupid bitch!” he snarled and threw her back on the ground. Jenna groaned at the impact and could only congratulate herself on her stupid idea. Great.

But now she was also angry and noticed that the pain actually wasn’t that severe, she had endured far worse than that before, and all of a sudden she didn’t care about what else he could probably do to her, she wanted to give way to her rage.

    “Set will get you.” She growled and managed to right herself up. “He will find me and when he does, he’s going to tear every single bone out of your body you miserable _worm_!” she heard his movements this time and kicked at the darkness, her boot hit something soft and she heard him cuss.

“And once he sees what you’ve done to me he will let you eat your own fucking entrails, so don’t _fucking touch me_ you bastard!” she shouted and received a punch against her temple that threw her to the floor and knocked her out for a moment. When she regained her consciousness again she tasted blood, her ear was ringing and her face was burning with pain where it had hit the ground. “Oh, yea... just… get on with it…” she croaked bristling and spat out the blood.

But the Vortian wasn’t even paying her attention anymore; through the ringing in her ear she heard the scratching sound of a long range communicator receiving a hail and when the Vortian took it her eyes widened under her blindfold in dismay.

    “Almighty Tallest Red, finally I got through to you, I’ve been trying all… n-no, my Tallest, I- I would _never_ … y- yes, I have her. What? Y- you mean, _now_? B- but you said you would come yours-, o- of course, my Tallest, at once, yes. Understood. I- I beg your forgiveness, my almighty Tallest, I will bring her at once.”

Jenna was writhing on the ground, trying everything to shuffle off the binds but the Vortian had fettered her too well. She heard him coming closer and kicked hectically but he had learned to stay away from her legs, circling her.

    “ _No_! No, don’t take me to them! Please, I’m begging you! What do you want, w-why are you doing this?! No!” she screamed, her voice cracking and shrieked when he grabbed her around her middle, lifting her up to throw her over his shoulder like a wet sack. Her anger had left her completely, panic and fear taken full control over her. The thought of being subjected to the mercy of the Tallest once more was simply too much for her and she struggled and bucked in the Vortian’s clutch, trying everything to free herself somehow. Despairing she screamed for help, screamed so loud she thought her vocal cords would tear and screamed only louder. “ _Help_! Oh god, please, help me! Anybody! I’m here, I’m _here_!”

The blindfold shifted from all her flouncing and she snapped her eyes open. The tech was carrying her through a dark tunnel, no, a hall, a _hangar_! Right towards a waiting cruiser, its tailgate standing open like the black jaws of a hungry animal. Once more she brought up all the strength she had in her body and threw herself against the Vortian’s grasp. Suddenly she felt her weight shifting on his shoulder and gravity pulling at her mercilessly. The tech toppled over backwards and went down with a wild curse, Jenna landing painfully on her knees; as fast as lightning she got up on her feet and ran off, towards another tunnel bearing the Vortian sign for “Exit”. The blindfold slipped completely off her head and she ran faster now that she could see properly, even though her bound arms made it hard to keep her balance at that speed.

She crossed the tunnel halfway before the Vortian tech tackled her down with his entire body weight, her temple colliding with ground again. Jenna screamed in pain and fury, but tried again and again to kick him and shake him off, she even tried to scratch him with her bare hands but he got up quickly and pressed his sharp knee into her back to keep her down. Tears of despair and defeat were burning in her eyes, running down her cheeks as the cursing Vortian bound her legs together and her hopes were dwindling while she wished with all her might that the Zar'tak would find her now.

   
  


Car ran through the darkness, around the corner of the hallway to the MedBay, the Zar'tak hot on her heels but this time around she didn’t mind; on the contrary - now she saw an _ally_ in him.

After the scary alien had recovered from the EMP enough to use his telepathic powers again, he had, quite vividly, gotten it _through_ her head that he had never meant to harm Jenna in any way. The telepathic contact was painful at first and Car had screamed out when the creature  entered her head to talk to her but she let him, despite the pain. However, he wouldn’t for the life of him explain to her why he had stalked Jenna then and why he knew that the Vortian tech was the actual assassin. Car growled furiously and pleaded devoutly that Jenna would be standing in front of the door, save and sound, save and…

Her frustrated shout startled the two assistants that stood waiting in front of the door to the MedBay, confused. With long strides the Vortian ran up to them.

    “Where is Jenna? Please tell me you saw her just now!” she called out, still running, but the two Ilenians only shook their heads and paled when they saw the tall, black Zar'tak striding up into the dim glow of the emergency lighting behind her. Then one of them caught himself and pointed at the door, the control panel standing open.

    “W-we just wanted to take the next shift but it was dark everywhere and the door was locked and then there was this bloodstain here.” Before he could finish speaking Car already shoved him to the side and cursed hoarsely when she saw the blood, so red it could only be Jenna’s.

    “No! No, no, no, this can’t be _happening_! Dammit Jenna, why do you have to be so fucking stupid!?” she screamed and clutched frantically at her horns. The fear for her friend made her sick and she looked around helplessly. “N- Nemon, we have to get to Nemon!” she said and grabbed the Zar'tak’s arm. “He will know what to do, come on!”

The Zar'tak shot her a surprised look when she grabbed him without any reserve but he nodded and followed her when she wheeled around and stormed down the main hallway, out of the MedBay complex and down into the city of the rebels. Many of the aliens on the streets turned around in shock when they saw the black, sinister looking alien running after her but Car ignored them all.

    Nemon had just left one of the administration buildings, returning from a meeting of the collective doctors in charge, and saw them running towards him from afar. Confounded and alarmed he came up to meet them, scrutinizing the Zar'tak with a more than wary gaze that even darkened when he noticed the completely distraught look on Car’s face.

    “What happened?” he immediately demanded to know, before he realized what was amiss, or rather, _who_ , and he felt his stomach jumping into his throat. “Where is Jenna?” he uttered.

Car was close to tears, something the Ilenian had only seen on two occasions and what rattled him all the more.

    “Jenna is _gone_ , Nemon! I- augh, shit, I don’t know what to do!” she sobbed and he gently clasped her shaking shoulders.

    “Calm down for now, you don’t help her by panicking. What’s _he_ doing with you, I thought…” Nemon replied confused and she shook her head fiercely.

    “No, Nemon, we were wrong all this time. The Zar'tak never wanted to hurt Jenna, it- it was a Vortian! And I believe it was this tech who was in the MedBay after the first blackout. Oh god Nemon I’m so sorry, it’s all my fault! If I hadn’t planned this stupid trap, if I hadn’t told her to split up… it’s _my_ fault!” Car panted choked and the Ilenian widened his eyes, horrified, when he realized what she meant.

    “So… he took her…” he muttered and she nodded.

    “I think so, yes… he must’ve knocked her down… there was blood.” Then suddenly she clasped a hand over her mouth and went as pale as death. “Oh fuck… the Irken is going to _kill_ me! And she told him to watch over Reliat and what did I do?!” She was crying loudly now and the Zar'tak carefully placed a hand on her shoulder, the green eyes giving off a flash.

She turned around to him and raised her hands in despair. “You can’t _know_ that! He could be long gone by now!”

Nemon looked around between them in bewilderment.

    “He talks to you?” he asked, undeniably fascinated and she nodded, trembling.

    “Yeah, but only through telepathy and it feels really, really _weird_. Dammit Nemon we don’t have time for _science_ now, we need to find her! What if she’s already…” She didn’t dare to finish the though and the doctor shook his head firmly.

    “We will find her Car; where was she when you saw her last?”

    “We split up in front of the MedBay to mislead him.” She showed him the hologram-bracelet. “When I took the Zar'tak down I texted her that she could take off her disguise. We wanted to regroup at the MedBay. That was… less than a quarter Ti ago. We found blood in front of the MedBay, but not much.” She explained to him and Nemon’s face eased up a little.

    “That is good. If he kidnapped her he probably won’t kill her right away or he’d already done that in front of the MedBay. And he can’t have gotten far, not if he was carrying her. Can’t he track her?” He gave the Zar'tak a nod. “How did you find her usually?” he asked the creature but he just stared at him out of his big, eerie green eyes, flashing briefly. Instead Car flinched and answered in his stead.

    “He can only hold contact with one person at the moment, the impulse has left him weak and not in full command of his powers, at least he claims so, which is why he can’t locate Jenna the way he used to. But he thinks that she’s still on the planet.”

Nemon let his gaze wander over the city, his four eyes were narrowed in concern and he almost looked threatening.

    "As far as I know, no ship or shuttle has left the planet today… she has to be here somewhere."

Suddenly movement came into the crowd all around them, everyone was running towards the airfield, waving excited. Jeering whistles and cries of triumph grew louder and the three looked up to the sky, startled. Like a blazing red ball of fire the enormous _Vengeance_ entered the atmosphere and dispersed the grey clouds into every direction, as if the ship was tearing the sky open. Nemon's eyes widened and he gasped in disbelief.

"They're back too _early_ , what the…"   
  
Car, too, watched shocked as the giant space ship descended lazily and was already ejecting its sets of landing gear. The panic from before stirred again, the attack should have taken at least another cycle for them to be successful, why where they back sooner?

    "I'm so dead…" she croaked and followed Nemon running after the stream of rebels pouring onto the airfield.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Such suspense, such action-filled thrill!! Everyon's in a tizzy! Children are screaming, arms are flailing! *unholy screeches of the damned*  
> Who would've thunked it WAS THE TALLEST BEHIND EVERYTHING AGAIN?!?!?!?!!
> 
> I certainly didn't ;;DD
> 
> Stay tuned for the next chapter, should be up in a bit ;) YEEHAAW double update to celebrate 2016 the future is now homies


	68. Intentions - Pt. 2

###  **\- 26 Intentions -**

******Part 2**

  
When the _Vengeance_ landed with a thunderous roar half the Resistance was already gathered around the majestic war ship and they had trouble getting through the crowd to the front, what only worked because the Zar'tak had the quite pleasant side effect to make everybody take at least a step back when they saw him. The ground crew of flight control was keeping the ecstatic spectators behind the security zone with admirably stoic composure but when Nemon raised his badge they let them pass, not without shooting the Zar'tak wary glances as he followed the doctor and the first Commander's daughter like a well trained pet.

 Car pattered impatiently and nervous on the spot, her heart beating fearful, apprehending that soon the ramp would lower and Rel wouldn't be under the survivors.

Even from up close the _Vengeance_ didn't show any sign of a fight and in secret she was hoping that Xakahr had suddenly seen the folly in his plans and given the order to turn around and cry off from this suicide mission.

Then, finally, after what felt like eternity, the lateral loading dock opened and the cheering resounded into a deafening choir when Tork stepped up on the ramp, shielding his eyes against the setting light of the twin stars. But the rebels quieted down quickly when not Xakahr and his guard followed the Commander, but the Irken invader, his left arm taped up tightly at his side, and after him Tork's own armed retinue and the pilots after them.

Disquieted muttering and confused shouts rang out from all around them and even Car was at first too confused by the situation to realize that Reliat was standing among the guards, waving at her. Then she saw him and darted from where she was standing, running up the ramp with a relieved sob, ignoring the ground crew's protests and the other rebels, and flung her arms around his neck with enough force to sweep them both off their feet. That elicited some touched _aww's_ in the audience and even baffled Tork, who had already opened his arms for his daughter, couldn't keep a short but loving smile from curling his lips. But he soon turned to the crowd again, his face now solemn and clouded.

    "Admiral Xakahr has fallen." He announced calmly, his voioce carrying over the airfield, and now shocked cries were raised, yet a general mourn stayed out. Nobody had really believed that the Admiral was pursuing a truly noble cause, he had even charged the rebels with taxes as of late, so he wouldn't be all that missed.

Nevertheless the members of the Resistance were caught up in turmoil. Why was their leader dead, what had happened? Tork raised his hands against the uproar. "I will tell you all about the accident and the course of the assault on the _Massive_ very soon, on my honor. But for now I want you all to welcome our long lost brothers and sisters we were able to free from the claws of the Tallest."

With this he turned around and waved at the soldiers to make way for the new arrivals they had rescued from the _Massive_ before it self-destructed. They were haggard, thin and hardened figures, squinting their eyes against the bright sunlight. All of them were wearing Irken prison uniforms, more rags than clothing, and at first nobody stirred on both sides until suddenly a young Vortian, no more than ten stars* old, broke free from the childminder holding his hand, and ran up the ramp to clutch the wispy waist of a scraggy Vortian woman, whose horns had been grinded down to stumps.

    "Mom!" the little one cried out at the top of his voice and the mother uttered a speechless sob as she drew her son in a tight embrace. Torn from their paralysis by this, more and more rebels approached the freed prisoners and helped them down the ramp, greeting them with soothing words and touches.

Set overlooked the whole scenery with a watchful gaze; of course he had seen Car and Nemon as well but he couldn't find Jenna anywhere up to now and he was growing uneasy. A lanky, old Vortian covered in scars from horn to hoof, wearing his prison overall knotted around his boney hips, stepped up beside him, rolling his wiry arms to relax his shoulders and taking a deep breath of the planet's air.

    "Ah, now _tha's_ more like it. So… did ya spy our lil human with those sharp invader eyes o' yers?" Jak grated curiously and looked around as well. He had become even scrawnier than on their last encounter, his bare torso covered in fresh, healing wounds. Apparently the Tallest had counted two and two together, realizing that someone inside the prison must've told Set what had really happened to Jenna, and decided to make the Vortian pay for it, probably only because he had been in the cell next to her.

Set only uttered a displeased grunt and took another look around. Then he spotted the Zar'tak and his antennae shot up in shock. With long strides he hurried down the ramp and grabbed the alien by the collar of his overall. Some of the rebels standing closer to them screamed in horror and recoiled in fear as the enraged invader bared his sharp teeth, ejecting deadly spider legs from his Pak.

    " _Where is she_!? I thought I ordered you to keep a close watch on her!" he snapped furious and the Zar'tak, although not all that much smaller than him, writhed in his iron grip, his four arms raised in defense. Car was finally able to tear herself away from Reliat's mouth and cursed wildly when she saw the struggle. Before her boyfriend could even grasp what was going on she was already sprinting down the ramp herself, completely ignoring her father again, and towards Set to grab his arm, for what she really had to stretch to actually catch hold of him. Nemon came to the Zar'tak's rescue as well, staring the invader right in the eyes to get his attention, which the frightened rebels commented with a collective gasp.

    "Set, calm down, please. It's not his fault, please put him down, he's too weak to talk to more than one person at the time being." The doctor said calm and quiet and Set's eyes glinted belligerent when he wheeled around to them. His right hand really let go off the flouncing alien's collar but he kept his spider legs at the ready.

    "Where. Is. Jenna?" he growled, his voice barely in control and Car swallowed the upcoming tears bravely, her hand patting his arm as if that could prevent him from snapping her neck in the next seconds.

    "S- Set, I'm… I'm so sorry. We thought the Zar'tak was after Jenna and we made this plan to catch him, so we split up and… she got kidnapped by a Vortian tech and we can't find her and I'm so, so _sorry_! It's my fault… I- I couldn't protect her!" she was crying now after all. All color seemed to leave Set's face and he flinched back from her. His spider legs lowered in disbelief and he jerked his head around to scan the area for her again, not willing to believe them.

    "This can't be…"  he muttered. The others said nothing, distraught,  but then the Zar'tak shot Car a glimpse and she flinched.

    "He says he can't locate her because of the EMP grenade I used to stun him and that he failed you and… he's asking you for forgiveness." She whispered but Set just shook his head, absentminded, and let a third arm snap from his Pak, bearing a small transceiver. Like a radar he waved it into every direction until it suddenly flashed, emitting a high tone. He stared at the blinking dot as if he only needed to reach out and close his hand around it to pull her towards him but then he hissed angrily and ran towards the MedBay complex. Car and Nemon exchanged a surprised look and were already on his heels when Tork stopped them all with a shout.

Trembling impatiently the invader wheeled around and only now Car saw the completely taped up left arm, bound closely to his body with bloodstained bandages, without a doubt Reliat's handiwork. A shudder ran over her back when she tried to imagine a fight so brutal that even a monster like the Irken could get harmed so badly in it, and she thanked Jenna from the bottom of her heart that she had asked her invader to watch over Reliat.

     Tork had reached them and raised his hands in confusion and irritation, looking at each of them for an answer.

    "Can _somebody_ tell me what's going on?" The first Commander, now the new leader of the Resistance, growled sharply and eyed the Zar'tak both confounded and wary. "When even my own daughter gives me the go-by like I'm a rotten Skorb it literally _spells_ trouble!"

Car gave him an apologetic look, but it was frantic. It was Set who answered him and it must have been the barely contained anger in his voice that silenced the bristling Commander.

    "Somebody took Jenna… I had hired that Zar'tak here to guard her while I was gone but apparently she felt threatened by his presence, which she wasn't supposed to notice in the _first place_ , but I'll deal with that later…" he nodded into Car's general direction, "They tried to catch him and Jenna got out of his sight long enough for an assassin to make his move. I've found the signal of her suit, Commander, and if you don't mind I'd  like to go and _find_ her." He added with a stifled hiss in his throat and Tork dismissed him with a nod.

    "Like hell I'll try to stop you from that. You sure your arm is healed enough?" Tork asked and Set only gave a curt nod back. "Then go get her back, invader."

The Irken wheeled around, and Car wanted to follow but her father held her back.

 "Oh no, _kid_ , you stay here and give your old man a hug dammit! You'd only be in his way and believe me… you don't want that. You should tend to the sick and injured we brought back from the fight. Moreover, I can well imagine that Reliat might take your mind off things. He has really proven himself and I not only mean that he patched our Irken back together. Don't worry, he'll find her." He said softly and smiled when his daughter looked up to him with a baffled and thankful gaze.

Reliat shot past them, calling out for Nemon who was already running off after Set.

    "Doctor, I need to talk to you about something important!"

The lean Ilenian only stopped for a moment to shake his head.

    "I have to be there when he finds Jenna. If she's severely hurt it could be too late until Set has brought her to the MedBay." And with this he stuck to Set's heels. Tork turned towards the pilots that had followed him and waved some of the flight security members closer.

    "I want an airborne barricade around the entire city. No cursed ship or shuttle will leave this planet and if only one tries, you'll intercept and force it to the ground, understood?" he ordered sharply and his pilots nodded solemnly before they walked off, shouting orders themselves. Frightened, Car grabbed Reliat's hand and looked after Nemon and Set until they disappeared among the crowd of aliens. The Zar'tak watched them as well but from his body language you couldn't possibly tell what he was thinking. With her heart pounding anxiously Car went to care for the hurt and sick right there on the air field.

    Set ran through the mass of bystanders without caring if whether he had to push one of them out the way but that didn't pose to be a problem anyway; most of them jumped out of his path as soon as they saw the giant invader running at them at top speed. When he noticed that Nemon was following him he slowed down, but only so much that the Ilenian could keep up with him. He was surprised when the doctor actually spoke to him although this speed was physically demanding even on the invader.

    "What happened to your arm?" Nemon asked quickly once he had gained on Set. He grinned crookedly and turned towards the entry of the MedBay complex building, where he stopped for a second to orientate himself.

    "Gone." He just said and Nemon cocked two pairs of brows, taken aback. "One of the Tallest tore it from my shoulder with an armor-piercing turret, the arm was beyond saving. I have to thank your assistant that I'm still alive."

Confused Nemon looked at the bandaged arm, which was clearly there.

    "I don't think I understand…" he retorted but Set shook his head impatiently.

    "Later, is there a way further down?" He showed Nemon the transceiver and the four brown eyes widened in realization.

    "Of _course_ , the underground…there's an access tunnel connecting the MedBay building directly with the hangars built underground the city. In fact, the whole city is connected underneath! In case of an attack on the surface, everything can be moved to the underground. For a certain amount of time that is. He must've planned to smuggle her off the planet with a cruiser!" he pointed at an elevator. "That's the fastest way."

Set growled and retracted his spider legs, save the one with the radar, ejecting four others in their place, tips glowing in a blue light.

    "Might not be fast enough." He pointed out and blasted a massive hole into the doors. Before Nemon could sound any words of protest the Irken had already slung his right arm around his waist and jumped into the shaft. His spider legs changed again and two thrusters accelerated their fall even further. The Ilenian held his breath and clawed into Set's arm, his eyes widening in panic when the floor of the lowest level came rushing at them in a sickening speed.

Just a second before they crashed into it, the invader twisted lithely in mid-air, reactivating the thrusters while his two other spider legs stopped the fall with a thundering crack that the force of the impact smashed the solid concrete and made the ground tremble. Almost gently he let Nemon down again and whipped out the scanner.

A menacing snarl erupted from his chest when he noticed how close they had already gotten to the flashing dot. Without another word Set ran on forward, Nemon close on his heels. They turned around a corner, just in time to see the black cruiser lifting off the ground with glowing engines and slowly hovering over to the take-off shaft, lowering at the other end of the hangar, its tailgate slowly closing, and for a second they could see Jenna's pale face in the darkness.

The roar that tore from Set's throat was so full of rage that it almost sounded feral as the Irken started running after the cruiser with long leaps, using the thrusters in his Pak to run even faster. Nemon followed him although he had already fallen far behind and watched in horror how the cruiser picked up speed, trying to increase its distance towards the Irken who was quickly making up ground on it. The ship was a good few meters in the air and the ramp of the shaft was almost lowered completely. If Set wouldn't reach the cruiser in the next second…

Then he heard Jenna scream; short and frantic, but without a doubt her voice, and the sound of it, the proof that she was _alive_ , was enough to make Set run even faster. The heavy boots of his armored suit pounded the ground, cracking it like ice as he caught up further , but suddenly the takeoff hatch was down and the cruiser gained room upwards and shot through the shaft.

Set didn't think twice and pushed off the ground, his spider legs propelling him even higher into the air but it was not enough, the cruiser was already out of his reach again. With a last blast of his thrusters the invader crossed the few meters and managed to grab the edge of the closing tailgate. The jolt that went through his body when the cruiser accelerated was enough to make him shout out in pain and he spat to get the taste of blood out of his mouth. He heard somebody curse from inside the ship and Jenna calling out his name, but the gate was closing more and more, relentlessly, no matter how hard he tried to pry it open with his spider legs. He screamed, mad with rage that this wretched lowlife dared to oppose him, and pounded his fist against the hatch as it kept closing with a crunching sound.

   
  


Jenna somehow got up on her feet and hobbled towards the Vortian who was trying frantically to balance the cruiser and man the tailgate's controls at the same time. Her arms and legs were still bound but that wasn't enough to keep her from throwing herself against him in an attempt to push him off the pilot seat. With an angry grunt he jerked his elbow back, right into her face, that her head snapped back and she felt her lip popping open but she kept trying to push him away. She had seen Set, had heard him roar and just the fact that he was _here_ , that he had found her gave her new strength to fight, to struggle and to try absolutely everything to thwart his plans after all, even if it meant that she had to crash this cruiser.

Another punch against her torso knocked the air out of her and set her ribcage ablaze with pain that she screamed agonized and crocked up for a second. The tech managed to close the hatch completely. Jenna whined and leaned over him to get to the lever that controlled the tailgate; she could hear hard knocks against the metal but she doubted that Set could break through it. In a desperate effort to foil his scheme she yanked up her head and hit him hard under the jaw. He grabbed her, brushing against the cyclic and the cruiser swerved dangerously to the side. The motion was strong enough to throw Jenna off of him and on the ground. The Vortian jumped out of his seat and kicked at her in a fit of rage, blood dripping from his chin. He kicked her through the shuttle and buried a hand in her hair to pull her up and deal her a vicious haymaker. She gasped, the entire left side of her face felt like it would break apart and she tasted blood filling her mouth. The tech stood up, looming over her and raised his fist again, a mad grin on his face that turned it into a distorted mask of anger.

    "The Tallest promised me immunity if I'd bring you to them! I- I won't be going back into their cell when they arrive _here_ , no way! I'll get my freedom for you, and a fulfilled life for the coordinates of the stellar cluster I sent them… luckily they didn't mention in which _state_ I am to deliver you!" With that he let his fist pound into her face over and over until the skin over his knuckles popped open and her blood was spraying from his hand. Jenna's screams were only a dull groan when he reached back again, his breath a ragged panting. She managed to hook her bound feet under one hoof and sweep him off his feet; with a startled yelp the Vortian went down and Jenna writhed on the floor, trying to get away quicker than he was back on his feet.

    " _Set_!" she cried out panicked, cried for help and thought she could hear him answering, a wordless roar. But then the tech was on her again, lunging at her, pressing her body down with his knees and closed his hands around her throat, so hard Jenna _felt_ how he was crushing her windpipe.

Her scream for Set drowned in a croaking burble. She couldn't move, her legs were kicking the ground in mortal fear and she felt the arteries in her eyes bursting from the blood pressure. Her head was spinning, her field of vision shrank down into a narrow, grey tunnel and her heart was beating so desperately it seemed to be trying to escape from her chest.

Suddenly the world came apart around her, a shrill shriek tore through the cruiser and deafening warning signals mixed under the screeching sound of metal shredding when Set simply tore the tailgate apart, folding it into the shuttle as if it was made of paper. His eyes were glowing with crimson, metal legs scrabbled through the opening like those of an actual spider in search of a victim and something flashed silvery beneath layers of bandages as he darted through the hole and brutally jerked the Vortian away from her.

Jenna took a desperate breath for air, her throat was burning. Her eyes, although already swollen from the punches, were fixed on the giant Irken, her ringing ears only heard his livid hissing as he lifted the tech up by his throat, a helpless ragdoll in his grasp, and started to tear him to pieces before her eyes. There was a strange metallic shine to his left hand, mechanical claws closed around one horn and tore it out of the Vortian's skull, but the blood-curdling scream that followed was music in her ears. Set didn't stop there; his spider legs stabbed everything they could reach, ripping skin and muscles from bones, breaking those bones, piercing eyes and guts alike. Lastly Set thrust his left hand deeply into the tech's ribcage, pulling something slimy, blue and _pumping_ out of his chest and shoved it into the Vortian's gaping mouth, knocking out a good amount of teeth as he did. That finally made the screams seize and he tossed the flayed corpse carelessly across the shuttle, disgusted.

Breathing heavily and with his crimson and purple armor covered in the tech's blue blood Set just stood there and closed his eyes, trying to get his body back in control and fight down the Pakrit frenzy. Jenna wanted to call out to him, wanted to crawl towards him but her body didn't obey her and her voice was no more than a thin whistling, hurting her throat so badly she winced. Set wheeled around at her faint sound and his eyes, two glowing slits in a face distorted by anger and fear alike, leveled down on her. No knight in shining armor would have been a more welcome sight to her than this blood-smeared, raging alien in front of her.

With a quick step he was at her side, lifting her up in his arm as gently as he could and hugged her carefully to his chest armor. Her body fitted right in the crook of his right arm and she allowed herself to sink against the hard plating of his shoulder while Set took out his Pak's communicator to talk to someone, steering the cruiser with his free hand to land it. It was over. A few tears ran hot over her battered face and now she managed to utter a whine. The miserable noise caused the invader to tremble and the armored hand around her thigh cramped up for a second in silent outrage. Her head was swimming in pain, she could hear him talking again, to Tork, then to Nemon and suddenly he rose from the pilot seat and carried her towards the glaring bright light shining through the destroyed tailgate, blinding her after the dimness of the blindfold and the hangar.

Jenna wanted to raise a hand against the light but her arms were still bound on her back and made themselves felt painfully now, her shoulders were brutally overstretched and the bonds were digging into her flesh. She wiggled desperately in Set's arm and he stopped in his steps.

Unable to talk she moved her arms around until he grasped what she wanted and quickly used a blade of his spider legs to sever the chains around her wrists and ankles like threads. When her overflexed arms suddenly slumped forward and the blood shot back into her hands like a thousand needles she wanted to scream in pain, yet only a wheezing gasp came out between her bleeding lips that was like liquid acid in her throat. Set growled furiously and pressed her closer to his body, one hand wrapped protectively around the back of her head before he stepped through the jagged gap.

The din that collapsed over them made Jenna flinch in his embrace and she opened one eye to look around alerted. Almost the entire Resistance had gathered around them, being hardly held back by flight security to make way for Nemon along with a team of paramedics, pushing a portable, floating MedPod in front of them. Nemon's cool hands touched her burning skin as gently as they could yet still she made another pained sound when his fingertips touched her face.

    "Nothing broken, but we have to treat her right away to be absolutely sure, her windpipe could be severely injured." She heard Nemon say in a thin voice and Set answered with an unwilling growl before he placed her down into the open MedPod with visible reluctance.

Then she remembered what the Vortian had revealed in his madness and a cold feeling clawed at her heart: The Tallest _knew_ where the Resistance was hiding, they were already on their way, they would…

Panicking, Jenna kicked inside the MedPod and tried to get Nemon's attention, tried to _talk_ , and grabbed for Set's hand, but she immediately flinched back upon feeling cold metal under her fingers. After a moment of fright she clutched the hand regardless and yanked on it, it was still _Set_ bending over her! His right hand, his _normal_ hand, gently stroked over her hair but he shook his head sternly.

    "Don't talk, you're too heavily injured!" he rumbled but she shook her head, more a tiny waggle as she wasn't capable of much more, and tried to somehow indicate him to bring her something to write on. "Don't worry, I won't go far. I'll stay with you." He assured her a little softer and she sank back exhausted, too spent to keep flailing her arms. Then the MedPod closed over her, blocking out the noise and voices. A soft blue light suffused the life-sized first aid kit and a computer voice noted every injury she had received before a needle with painkillers and sedatives sank into her arm and turned the pain into a dull throbbing. Trembling Jenna sighed soundlessly and relaxed more and more until she slid into a dreamless sleep.  
  


* * *

  
  
*stars - short for stellar cycles, equal to years

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That epic double update to solve the action-filled thrill that was this wild ride of a series of chapters!!! See? I can be nice and not have a fricking cliff hanger for once x'D 
> 
> So what will happen next?! Will the Tallest arrive the next day and enslave everyone, destroying the city and leaving the planet a barren wasteland? Or will Set snap Car's neck and the Zar'tak's too for losing his beloved testsubject?! Find out next week on "Aw jeese, not again" 
> 
> *wipes off sweat* oh boi, that was a real monster I typed out right there.... I hope you like it <3


	69. Intentions - Pt. 3

###  **\- 26 Intentions -**

**Part 3** __  
  
4 hours later - MedBay

 

Set didn't pay the nurse any mind when she entered the room, just briefly lifted his gaze from Jenna's battered face as the Ilenian approached the sleeping human, and stopped opening and closing his new fist. The quiet, steady whirring died down like an unspoken warning. Yet she simply checked the status of the life support machines before she left again, keeping her head down while the crimson eyes followed her alertly until the door closed behind her.

A sting of guilt went through him for the split of a second, he hadn't meant to scare the Ilenian girl like that. Then he looked back down on Jenna from across the room, watching how her chest heaved gently and evenly; she hadn't woken up yet. Nemon and his assistants had removed her clothes to exchange them for the regular MedBay patient gown and the mere sight of it made his anger flare again, the anger he had for himself, as did the heavy neck brace wrapped around her throat. It concealed the ugly, dark bruises the Vortian's fingers had left on her skin and was supposed to quicken her natural healing process, as Nemon had assured him over and over. She would heal, she wasn't in danger anymore.

With a loud exhale he leaned forward again, propping his elbows on his knees and opened and closed the fingers of his metal hand. The feeling seemed authentic enough for him, almost like a normal arm and yet he felt terribly separated from his artificial limb made from a titanium alloy, with red lights at the seams, shaped in the graceful style of Irken architecture. The invader was still staring at Jenna, but he allowed himself a moment to let his thoughts wander, back to the _Massive_ , the Command Bridge, back to the pain and the blood.

Reliat had temporarily sewn up the gaping, bleeding wound where once his arm had smoothly connected to his shoulder and was just about to completely cauterize it with a laser scalpel. Panic had overwhelmed him then and he grabbed the young doctor's wrist so hard he could see the pain flashing over his face. His face was burning with shame when he asked Tork to get him to the _Massive_ 's MedBay. The Irken crew had already abandoned the ship and only service drones remained, along with the prisoners in the ship's lower decks, so they had split up. Tork took his men down to search the cell blocks for members of the Resistance while the Commander was hailing the _Vengeance_ , instructing the crew to immediately steer the war ship towards the _Massive_ and ready her remaining transporters to get them back aboard.

Reliat followed Set with two fighters up to the MedBay, and even though the invader was staggering and barely able to walk without his knees shaking he would refuse every form of help from them with a fiery hiss. His Pak was a smoldering hot lump of metal in his back and the warning signals coming from his internal interface had made him half mad when he finally stumbled through the door to the MedBay, immediately punching the big, red distress button next to it. When the life-support emergency system came to life with loud howling and spider legs descending from the ceiling the two soldiers had all but fled the Bay, but Reliat had quickly realized what was going on and proved more than useful in supporting the Irken system. Between the individual steps he had scribbled hasty notes on a datapad and swayed a scanner over him in excitement while the ship's computer registered the missing limb, initiating the replacing procedure.

Set had known many Irkens with artificial limbs made from metal or synthetics, it was even a common sight amongst the soldiers and many of the lower invaders, since cloned extremities were far too expensive for most, but it was only now he realized why no one ever really bragged about having a hand made of metal or a whole leg; the procedure was bloody, messy and most of all _painful_.

More than once the mighty, hardened invader was on the brink of begging the Ilenian to end his life, and the sound of his own piercing screams was still echoing in his head, but eventually it was over and before he knew it his Pak was already calibrating the initial motion sequences. It had been awful at first, he could barely control the arm and the movements were jerky and slipshod. He was more a threat to himself and the arm had to be immobilized so his body could get used to the connection but at least he wasn't in immediate danger of dying anymore.

Once they regrouped with Tork and the freed prisoners they made their way towards the main hangar to meet up with their requested getaway transports. Their escape was much less coordinated than that of the trained Irken crew and they got caught up in occasional fights with Irkens left behind, but somehow they managed to get their band of freed rebels to the transporters and it was little short of a miracle that the _Vengeance_ made it into hyperluminal drive before the _Massive_ exploded behind them.

The thought jerked Set back into the present and he felt a now familiar sting in his chest: loss. He had spent so much time on the _Massive_ … she had seemed save and homely to him, and it made him sad that she had been destroyed. He bared a majority of the blame for this but when he raised his gaze back to look at Jenna he felt the guilt leaving him as if it had never been there. Yes, in retrospect he would do everything just the way he had, from the moment he had captured her up to this very one - though without the pain he had caused her... and without having the Vortian traitor beating her bloody like this.   
  
He was so much more now, even though he wasn't entirely _himself_ anymore, he thought with a regretful glimpse at his metal appendage and opened his fist. He had seen the way she flinched from touching it earlier and found himself nervous at the thought of how she would react to it when she woke up. He quickly lifted his head again to cast her a scrutinizing glance but she still hadn't stirred. As his eyes wandered down to linger on the brace around her neck he clenched his metal fist so hard he could hear the tips of his fingers crunch on the smooth palm. Seething with hatred he wished he could revive that worm only to tear him into even smaller pieces for what he had done to her! And Xakahr, too, that pompous bastard!

In this very moment Tork was speaking to the entire Resistance to tell them about their fight against the Irkens and explain the new situation to them. Set had been the only one allowed to excuse himself from the speech. He didn't even have to ask, one good look at his face had been enough for the Commander to dismiss him with nothing more than a nod. Because of the incident with the destroyed cruiser, and the horrible bloodbath within, the rebels had become even more afraid and wrought-up, and were now demanding answers to their countless questions from their first Commander.

He would tell them that Xakahr had been killed by the Tallest, and even though this grievous lie had the Vortian grinding his teeth it was still necessary to fasten the Resitance's cohesion and to stroke their determination to fight the Empire. It was all the same to Set. He would second every version Tork would spread as the official one without hesitation. He owed his life to him, Reliat as well, as he recalled, and he couldn't help but smile to himself thinking that _he_ had been supposed to watch over the nervous field medic. The little guy would have been fine even without him.

The Irken blinked slowly and it took him another good second before he realized that green eyes were returning his gaze from beneath heavy, swollen lids. He stood up so quickly that the stool he had been sitting on crashed into the wall. Jenna flinched at the loud noise. She had barely caught herself from her start when he was already over her, his elbow propped up on the thin bolster next to her head, and bent closely over her face. His cool lips found hers, hot and dry, crusted with blood and kissed them as carefully as he managed to, as gently as his churning mind would allow. If she hadn't been so injured he would already have her tight in his arms, taking her breath away!

She swallowed hard, he felt her trembling beneath him, trying to force back the tears with hitched intakes, her small hands were clutching his face, feeling, groping, convincing herself that he was really there and then a small whimper broke from her chest, wordless but he heard the relief in it. Slowly he parted from her and drew back only far enough to look upon her face. Jenna gave him a crooked smile, swallowed again and screwed her face in pain. Chirping quietly he brushed his right thumb over her lips; he would have loved to free her from this cursed neck brace but he reminded himself that this hefty thing would only heal her faster, injecting painkillers and healing gel , improved for humans, into her muscles.

For a moment they stayed like this, touching each other gently and a bit timid; he because he didn't want to accidentally hurt her, she because she still couldn't really belief that he was here with her. Then her eyes flashed over to his left side and his right hand clenched next to her head.

    "Ah, that…" he hummed slowly and leaned further back to show her his new arm. Jenna's eyes grew round when her eyes followed his hand up the metallic construct to his shoulder and she clasped a hand over her mouth in silent shock. Her eyes were filling with tears whereat Set quickly reached out to calm her. "It doesn't hurt, anymore, that is… I'm sorry I scared you. I'm..." He wasn't sure what to say, how to explain it to her and he felt like a failure, coming back to her broken and incomplete.

But suddenly her expression changed, she cocked a brow and grinned at him. Set tilted his head to the side in question, not sure what she was all about. When Jenna was already trying to wave her hands around he opened his Pak and took out a small datapad. Grateful she snatched it and typed away before handing it back to him.

 

_You broke your promise!_

Confused he frowned, his mouth opening in defense, but she already took back the pad and typed on.

 

    _You promised to come back in_ one _piece._

 

Now he couldn't keep a grin himself and chuckled quietly, waving the pad in her direction.

    "And didn't _you_ promise me to be a good girl and stay out of trouble?" he replied and she shrugged with a pained smile. But his smile was already vanishing again. He looked down on the pad in his left hand, his _new_ hand. "It was Red." He just mumbled. That was all. No _Tallest_ anymore, no leader, just Red. Jenna's eyes grew wide and she took his hand in her own, squeezing his fingers. Set took it as encouragement to go on, as much as it hurt his pride. "I was unwary for a second and had my back to the door of their quarters on the Bridge. I… I thought I would die there. Then Tork and the others showed up and drove them back. I was… normally I would've been… offended, getting _saved_ like that… but I was _glad_ to see them, especially Reliat." He grinned for a blink and interlaced his fingers with hers. "If it hadn't been for him, I probably wouldn't even have made it off the ship alive."

His look turned dark and he gave her a long look before going on, "You were right, Jenna. About the Paks and the Control Brains… they really seem to be more than what I thought until now. Red, he… he talked about a Hive, something that came to Irk and found the first Tallest there, and that the Tallest are only servants of that Hive." He stopped, trying desperately to remember what the Tallest had revealed to him before Tork shot him, but because of his blood loss back then he had been so dazed he could hardly recall half of the things Red had said and the other half made no sense in his head. "Forgive me, I know that doesn't make any sense to you. They wanted to recode me, wanted to make me their weak-willed slave again… wanted me to bring you to them…" he stopped in his half choked flow of speech when her fingers clawed into his hand and her eyes snapped open in horror. "Don't worry, I would have never let them recode me, sooner I would have-" She interrupted him again, hastily grabbed the datapad, almost dropped it, and punched so quickly on the pad that the holoscreen flashed like a firework.

Set placed his hand on her thigh, concerned. He hadn't meant to frighten her with what had happened to him but when she finally pushed the pad back into his hand he realized it wasn't him who had spooked her so, but rather something he made her remember.

 

    _The assassin had a deal with the TALLEST, not Xakahr! He was supposed to take me to them and gave them the coordinates of the cluster we're in! I have to talk to Tork right now!! They know where we are!!_

Set had to read it twice before he understood. When he did, he was already on his feet and wanted to make for the door, but stopped and looked back to Jenna, torn. He didn't want to leave her alone again, not now! But she quickly shook her head, winced at the pain and made a shooing gesture with both hands. _Go, go already!_

He knew what was going on inside her head, what she was thinking. This was bigger than their lives, if this message were to reach Tork too late it would all be over. Tork would have to evacuate the whole planet or face the armada in an open battle, and you didn't have to be all that bright to imagine how that was likely going to end.

He ran out the door and only stopped to tell the nurse to have an eye on Jenna's door and let nobody enter. The invader took the elevator to the planet's surface and left the MedBay complex to cross the city  and get to the _Vengeance_ 's giant hangar at the end of the airfield. The enormous ship was back in the orbit by now to make room for the entire Resistance to gather in the hangar to hear Tork's speech, its shadow looming over the city like it was trying to hide the rebels from the view of their foes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for that rather short chapter, but I had a busy week/weekend, with an appartment that I'll need to move into by the end of the month but oooh boi I'm so excited! I finally get to live a bit closer to work so I'll have more spare time, woohoo!!
> 
> Also Jenna and Set fluff makes me happy and squealing~


	70. Intentions - Pt. 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **ATTENTION!! The next chapter will be up on Monday, 25th. I'm sorry for the delay, guys, I'm still busy packing my things to move out and the week has been stressful for me :C**

###  **\- 26 Intentions -**

**Part 4**

  
The guards at the back entrance let him pass at once, one of them nodded at him in tribute. Set didn't notice either of them but crossed the hangars freight room, entered the main hall and marched straight up to Tork, standing on an elevated podium, explaining to his audience how he was planning to form a council of multiple battle-tested Commanders and prestigious scientists, to decide over the Resistance's future and the course this war against the Empire should take from there on.

The first Commander broke off immediately when he noticed Set and shot him an alarmed glance, the Vortian truly had a sense for bad news. He was still clad in his blood-stained armor which he wore over the same black overall as everyone else, and that only differed through the badges on his chest and sleeve.

Without a word Set showed him the datapad with Jenna's message and exchanged a quick look with the Commander. Tork nodded in silence and gestured at him to wait while he turned back to the anxious mass of rebels, looking up to him in fright, unsettled by the invader's sudden interruption as if the very sight of him meant ill tidings.

    "I'm afraid I have troubling news for the lot of us…", he said without much ado and a startled murmur went through the crowd. "And I don't want to whitewash anything just to lull your minds; I suppose most of you know that a cruiser left the MedBay-hangar approximately four Ti ago, and was brought down soon after by force. Some of you know, that Set was responsible for the destruction of the shuttle and the bloodbath left within. But only a few know what really happened there, and that is a crime. A traitor, a Vortian technician, one of _us_ tried to kidnap the human known as Jenna, the heroine who lifted the siege that General Lenka had over one of our outposts, though some of the less _tolerant_ members of the Resistance might know her under other, less cultivated _nicknames_ I don't want to mention, but let's keep to the facts:

   "Jenna is a survivor of this war like the rest of you and a good friend of mine, by the way. She single handedly destroyed an Irken space station just to save the life of the Irken invader standing behind me, because she believed in the good in him. Despite my doubts her intuition proved to be right, and I can assure you that Set isn't the one you might think you're seeing before you, but one of us. It is only thanks to Jenna and her trust in Set that we were even able to attack the _Massive_ without any greater losses. Xakahr wanted to execute her for that, because he was blind for her true value for our cause."

He let his gaze wander over the rows and rows of rebels, over the faces of soldiers, women, children and elders.

Set had narrowed his eyes in outrage, antennae whipping the air in disgust and barely contained anger. He had come to overhear some of those _nicknames_ on the _Vengeance_ , invented by soldiers who hadn't been on the _Rebellion_ , most of them hinting at their interspecies relationship, and it had taken all his willpower to not tear them all to pieces.

Tork continued:

    "At first I was sure that this Vortian was acting on Xakahr's orders… but I was wrong. Just now Set discovered that the order to kidnap Jenna came from the Tallest themselves. I can't imagine why a free Vortian, a member of the Resistance would bow to their command… but I think I _know_ why. Out of fear. His believe in our cause faltered and failed him, but that is no reason to doom another member of the Resistance, to sell them out like a coward and slave of the Empire! The traitor got what he deserved, courtesy of Set. And if he hadn't been there to save Jenna and bring her back alive to us we would've never learned that the Tallest now know of our location."

An outcry from thousand throats rang through the vast hangar, deafening. The rebels called out all at once, many started to cry and sob, others tried to turn and run out of the hangar, probably to bundle their belongings together and leave the planet at once.

But Tork wasn't deterred by the uproar. Calm and composed he stood on his podium, arms casually crossed on his back, and snickered.

That made the aliens fall silent one after another as they turned around again to look up aghast to their first Commander whose shoulders were shaking from laughing until even Set was casting him an unsettled side glance.

After he had caught himself again Tork sighed and opened out his arms as to embrace them all.

    "Just _look_ at yourself; you only hear "Tallest!" and you lose your mind! Has Xakahr's reign left you all cravens? I know, living on this planet was easy for once, the fight was way out there, the Irkens far from discovering this distant world, and soon you became used to the comforts it brought, snug as a Blob on Foodcourtia during the Foodening!" He curled his hands into fists and nodded at them, his red eyes piercing the rebels that met his glare. "Well, I've been out there my entire life, fighting your war, rescuing your lost friends and family members, trying to fulfill our cause the best I could. And now I stand before you as your leader, the next fool in line to keep it all together. But it will be different from now on. I won't let you hide anymore, I want you to pick up those weapons you once held as you fought your way out of the armada's grasp and help me win this war!"

His voice was loud and full, booming through the hangar, and where Xakahr would have needed to make use of the speaker system, Tork didn't need to. The rebels slowly came back to the podium and something seemed to change in their eyes. Where before they looked frightened and on the brink of breaking into panic there now was a hardened, stubborn determination, slowly changing their faces. Some straightened in pride, especially the Vortians. Set saw children copying their fathers, pushing back shoulders and rising high on their back-bent legs to seem taller. He glanced at Tork again, and saw a wild grin on his face, his eyes shining with pride.

"See? That's more like it. Now… as I was saying: The Tallest know where we are. But! You didn't let me finish before. Yes, the Irkens know the _stellar cluster_ we're in. Yes, their armada vastly outnumbers our fleet and _no_ , we won't be able to defeat their forces in space. Those are the negative facts. But here's the good news: First, they don't even know the system our planet is, so they will have to scan the whole cluster and if we keep calm and act under the radar we'll have enough time to evacuate the planet and make for one of our many outposts. Second, they have suffered a great loss themselves, which is the _Massive_ that self-destructed. One of the Tallest got injured, how severely I cannot say, but bad enough that they were forced to retreat and lick their wounds. They will need time to regroup before launching a direct assault on us, which means even more time for us. And third, we're not blind among the stars; we have more sentries posted around our home base than anywhere else in the galaxy that will warn us timely."

He paused for a moment to observe the reaction on their faces and seemed pleased with what his speech had awoken in the rebels. Tork took a second to nod and take a satisfied breath before he went on.

    "Alright, now that you are all briefed about the situation at hand, I must tend to coordinate this evacuation and plan out our next steps. Please return back to your stations. If you have any further questions I'd ask you to turn to my lieutenants and I will answer them in a second address in a few cycles. Thank you for your trust."

With this Tork turned away and indicated Set with a nod to follow him.

Once outside his guards already gathered around them but the Commander sent them back to the hangar, with the order to make sure that no turmoil would occur. When they were alone the Vortian scrutinized the tall invader from below.

    "How's the arm?" he asked more curious than concerned and Set grinned.

    "Works like a charm after I got to try it out on that traitorous worm." The Irken replied and the Commander growled.

    "A damn shame what happened to Jenna… I still don't quite understand what the hell actually happened. I'm just glad you were there to stop him before the fighters got to the cruiser. So she's awake?" he changed the subject and Set nodded curtly.

    "She is, and every time she looks at me I feel like I am the one that did this to her. I failed to protect her again… I thought a bloody Zar'tak would be enough to keep any harm from her, but apparently I underestimated the danger she can be for herself. I thought I had learned from the incident on the _Massive_." He hissed in self-contempt but Tork shook his head with a softer expression.

    "Don't say that, we couldn't have known…"

Set returned his gaze with a cocked brow; of course they had suspected that the assassin with the gut-gorger was still after him, and probably after Jenna, too, which was the reason he had hired the Zar'tak in the first place, and they both knew very well that Jenna was like to take matters into her own hands once she felt cornered. The Vortian sighed. "Alright, it was more than likely that something like that might happen. But you saved her life and only that really matters in the end. I think by now she's really harder than she looks… and last time I checked she looked pretty hard on the eyes." He japed drily and gave a reboant laugh when Set shot him an indignant glare, bristling, before he remembered to reign himself in. Tork laughed all the louder. " _Yikes_! And I thought her looks were the only ones that could kill a man on the spot."

The soldiers in front of the MedBay complex let them pass with a nod and Tork clapped one of them on the shoulder good-naturedly. The foyer was brimmed with aliens, despite the late hour. There were still members of the Resistance asking if some of their relatives or friends had been brought back from the _Massive_. Many of the prisoners had been too weak to leave  the _Vengeance_ on their own and after the first had disembarked, the ground crew members had ordered the bystanders to clear the area for the paramedics and medical staff to get the emergency cases to the MedBay as quickly as possible to treat their wounds. All in all Tork and his men had been able to get more than three hundred rebels out of the _Massive_ 's cells before the ship exploded. But none of them mentioned the ones they had been forced to leave behind.

Set took a look around and spotted the young Vortian, who had been the first to run up the ramp, locked in a tight embrace with his mother on one of the metal benches, and the corner of his mouth twitched into a short smile. The sight stirred something inside him and he felt himself remembered of Jenna, when he had found her back on the _Massive_ , on the brink of death, but still _alive_ , and just then, when her small hands had cupped his face so gently. He tried to find a word for this sensation and even trawled the human language but he couldn't find anything that really pleased him. Another question for Jenna.    

When they entered the wing Jenna's room was located in, the nurse looked up from her desk in start and pointed with a shaking hand towards Jenna's door, conscience-stricken and frightful as the invader approached her with long strides. Set's expression immediately clouded but he said nothing.

    "I- I tried t- telling them that _nobody_ was permitted to enter b- but they insisted to see her, and they had this- this _thing_ with them! I- I didn't know what to do!" She stammered breathless and now Set's upper lip curled into a snarl and even Tork furrowed his brows in apprehension. Without waiting for another word the invader bolted through the door, planting himself threateningly inside the frame. When he had evaluated the situation inside the room he relaxed however, his raised antennae falling back on his head.

Jak was straddling the chair in front of Jenna's stretcher he had sat on before, arms crossed over the backrest, laughing that raspy, dirty laughter of his. Car sat with Jenna on the bed, her arms tightly wrapped around the human, and didn't seem willing to let go of her that soon, while Reliat was standing beside her, still writing notes on his datapad, lost in thoughts. Ever since Set's operation he had done nothing else besides typing away on his pad, frowning in concentration and mumbling to himself. He had exchanged his body armor for the white lab-coat he usually wore in the MedBay though.

 A black shadow was leaning against the opposite wall and seemed to shrink when Set noticed him. He stared the Zar'tak down with unconcealed anger and took a brisk step towards him.

It had gotten quiet the second he entered the room so he could now hear the scared sound that left the black alien's throat. Set grinned maliciously.

    "Well, well… so you _can_ produce sounds after all you stinking liar… I'd like to know if you can also beg for mercy." The Irken growled and the five green eyes widened, full of fear. But before he could do anything else Car stepped between him and the Zar'tak, and opened her arms as to shield the telepath from his wrath.

    "Hey! If you want to put the blame on someone, fine, here I am! After all it was _my_ idea to catch the Zar'tak. But leave him out of this, you could've at least _told_ us that you hired a bodyguard for Jenna!" the Vortian snapped at him and Set's anger puffed out just like that. For one, he couldn't just thump her as he had planned for the Zar'tak because she had to be the Commander's daughter out of all people, and, to cap it all, she was right as well. So he left it at a wordless growl and took Car's place beside Jenna on the bed, letting the armor he had donned before retreat into his Pak. Jenna had watched all of this silently, but he saw in her chiding glare that she would've loved to comment on this herself. Set simply wrapped his arms around her and dipped his head to mutter quietly into her hair what made her smile as she put her hands on his arm, leaning back against him.

Jak watched them with big eyes before he found his grin again, showing broken, yellow teeth. He turned around to Tork.

    "Ne'er would've thought them Irken dogs could be so sweet 'n cuddly an' _gross_." He cackled and made a retching sound in the back of his throat, but other than the Zar'tak he wasn't deterred in the slightest by Set's furious glare but instead made a regretful face. "Aah, an' here I was already hopin' she'd leave yer green arse for my scrawny behind." He exclaimed miserably and clutched at his chest in feigned heartache when Jenna stuck out her tongue at him, grinning, and snuggling up against Set some more. "Augh, 'm mortally wounded! Have mercy on me, sweet-cheeks!" The old Vortian wailed, which made even Car laugh out. In this moment Nemon entered the room and Tork exhaled relieved.

    "Nemon. It's good to finally have someone _reasonable_ in this room who isn't _me_."

At the comment Nemon looked up from his files in confusion and noticed the flock of visitors. His four eyes narrowed in a frown and he gave Car and Reliat a sharp look.

    "I would have at least expected _you_ to know that Jenna needs rest most of all now!" he chided both of them but his eyes grew softer as they already opened their mouths in unison to apologize. "But I know as well that it would've been no use trying to stop you."

He checked on the life support system adjusted to Jenna and then felt the part of her neck that wasn't covered by the neck brace. Set let go off her for the moment, but kept the fingers of his right hand woven through hers and gave her hand a gentle squeeze when she flinched under Nemon's touch, screwing up her face in pain. But the Ilenian was soon done with his examination and nodded relieved.

    "Everything seems to be healing very well and I think as soon as the swelling has regressed you can slowly start talking again. But for the time being you should take it easy, and above all don't overstrain yourself, the tissue around your windpipe is still very badly injured, and any kind of exercise might damage it further." He shot Set a quick but very telling glance, unnoticed by everyone else in the room and the Irken had to contain himself to keep his expression in check. On one hand he was a bit peeved that Nemon thought he would just have it off with Jenna despite the state she was in once they were all gone, but on the other hand he felt a small, disappointed sting that he was explicitly forbidden to do so. Jenna had seen Nemon's glance and nodded with a smile, and a gentle nudge against Set's stomach, what made him lay back his antennae now after all, caught.     

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **ATTENTION!! The next chapter will be up on Monday, 25th. I'm sorry for the delay, guys, I'm still busy packing my things to move out and the week has been stressful for me :C**
> 
> Aaah, it's good to have Tork back in action, and Jak! I love writing these characters, although I always have to check how to write Jak's fricking accent x'D  
> Poor Set, back from war, his wifey is off her period and he still can't smash because she's hurting *cackles* oooh, I torture my characters in the worst possible ways~ 
> 
> Also what the heck is Reliat up to, writing all that shit? Something must've been pretty interesting in that MedBay, huh?  
> aah, anyway, you'll soon know what I'm plotting and scheming about behind the curtains, drawing strings and tripping over my stuff that's lying around because I'M MOVING BITCHES!!! WOOO! I'm gonna have a nice place of my own with a FUCKING GARDEN AND BETTER INTERNET AND A SHORTER WAY TO WORK AAAAAHHHH'M EXCITED!
> 
> Augh I wanna spoil and tell y'all about the things to come... *slaps hand* no! bad meK! go back to writing!
> 
> Hope you all had a wonderful weekend! ♥ May your Monday be shorter than mine ;-;


	71. Intentions - Pt. 5

###  **\- 26 Intentions -**

**Part 5**

  
Tork watched Nemon examining Jenna's injuries and glanced at Reliat who had already gone back to reviewing his notes on what he had learned on the _Massive_. The first Commander was pleased with the young doctor as much as he was impressed. Not only had he proven a lot braver in battle than one might have guessed, but he had also been quick to realize the opportunity to gain intel Set's operation had offered. While Tork didn't know everything of what his field medic had discovered, yet, he knew enough of it to say that it was of utmost importance for Jenna to recover quickly, and for the Resistance to make its move against the Empire before they could realize what they were up to. He sighed and stepped up next to Nemon.

    "How long will her recovery take? There's much we have to discuss, the incident with the traitor is only one of many matters. I suppose Reliat has already talked to you about the insight he brought home from the _Massive_?"

Nemon finished his inspection, shooting first Reliat and then Jenna a pondering look before answering the Commander.

    "I'd say two cycles, at most. Since we were able to treat her injuries right away, and she didn't break anything this time, the healing process is going much faster. And until she's fully recovered to use her voice she can communicate with us via the datapad." The doctor explained and Tork nodded contented when Jenna already reached eagerly for the device next to her stretcher, her eyes glinting with determination. The Commander couldn't help but admire her strength. After all that had happened to her and everything she had been through, all the pain and fear, she had lost neither her will to fight nor her resolve. She was indeed harder than she looked.

He looked around them all, scrutinizing the people in the room. Jak was the only one not directly related to any of this and Tork was about to wonder if he was trustworthy enough when the old Vortian got to his feet with a groan and mussed Jenna's hair with a scarred hand.

    "Welp, s'ppose that's my cue. See ya later kiddo. An' _yer_ gonna keep an eye on'er, aight?" he said towards Set, flashing a brazen grin before bowing to Tork in respect and leaving the room. Nemon looked after him in utter confusion as if he had only now noticed him.

    "Who was that?" the Ilenian asked befuddled and Jenna quickly typed something on the pad, handing it to him.

 

_An old friend. Gave me the secret password for the Resistance. He was locked in a cell next to Ria and me._

 

Nemon gave her an understanding nod once he had skimmed the lines, smiling softly. But Tork came straight to the point as soon as the door had closed itself.

    "Alright, I still don't fully understand what the Zar'tak has to do with all of this… would someone care to enlighten me`" he growled and it was Car who answered him. She told him about the first time Jenna brought up that the black alien was following her and how he had appeared in the MedBay shortly after that. When she described the blackout, Jenna interrupted her and held up her datapad once more, having already typed something on it.

   

    _That was also the first time we saw the Vortian. He said that some technicians were working on the power grid and had caused a temporary blackout. But before he left he gave the Zar'tak a queer look, as if he was angry with him… Somebody wanna ask him about that?_

She gestured uneasy towards the Zar'tak and the big green eyes set on her, curious, before glowing in an eerie light. Jenna flinched back startled when the datapad flew right out of her hands, floating through the air towards the black alien. She felt Set tensing against her back, snapping the panels of his Pak in a wordless threat, but Car raised a hand to calm them down.

    "Don't worry, he just wants to take a look at it for himself, he says." She reassured Jenna and only now Reliat lifted his eyes from his notes.

    "How do you know that?" he asked seriously confounded and looked over towards the Zar'tak who was studying Jenna's message. Then he pushed off the wall and stepped closer to place the datapad back into her lap, his head turned slightly away from her, as if he knew that his eyes were frightening her. Set relaxed again, although he slid his arm protectively around her waist again.

The telepath straightened and took a step back, closing his eyes in concentration. The air grew thick with static, causing the lights to flicker for a brief moment before the atmosphere returned to normal again. When the Zar'tak opened his eyes, glowing like spirit lights, a familiar humming filled Jenna's head, making her shudder. Gazing around she realized that she wasn't the only one experiencing this uncomfortable sensation; Tork was frowning, Nemon had his eyes and mouth open in stun and Set emitted a warning hiss in return. The only one who seemed completely unfazed by all of this was Car. She was smiling.

The humming grew louder in their heads, like an angry swarm of bees, until it thickened into a voice. It was calm and hushed, like the voice inside your own mind when reading a book, without a real tone or volume to it. It reminded Jenna so much of the Mnemograph Set had used on her to rummage through her brain, that it took all her strength not to clasp her hands over her ears when the Zar'tak started talking to them.

    _"Forgive me, it was never my intention to cause this much confusion. But I was ordered to exercise utmost caution and secrecy in order to protect the human's life. If you command it, I shall report what took place while you were absent."_ He offered, inclining his head towards Tork.

He gave the black alien a surprised look, but nodded in return and the green eyes blinked in response.

    _"Very well, then… the Irken invader sought me out before his departure with the intention to employ my services to protect the human. The agreed payment would have been more than generous, if I hadn't failed."_ His black frame seemed to surge beneath the overall as if he was trembling in shame.

_"The invader instructed me to protect the human from any harm, but ordered me to efface myself doing so, for my presence would likely draw the attention of Xakahr's loyal supporters. It also would have cautioned possible assassins to wait for a more opportune moment to strike. So I watched and followed the human to learn who speaks with her, whom she trusts and who seems to be out of place."_

Jenna waved to get his attention and typed something on the datapad. When she held it up the Zar'tak cocked his head in curiosity.

 

    _Please call me Jenna, okay?_

 

Set smiled and gently rubbed her shoulder.

    "She hates _nicknames_ like that." He explained quietly as he remembered the way she had snapped at him because he used to call her "Earthworm" or "Human" as if she was only some creature without a conscience. It seemed an eternity ago.

The Zar'tak _humm_ ed, nodded, and continued.

    _"As you wish, Jenna. The incident in the MedBay revealed my antagonist; the Vortian technician. He was the one responsible for the blackout. He was trying to attach a tracking device on the- on Jenna, and_ _used an external control panel to interrupt the lightning's circuitry for a short amount of time, so he could aim through one of the ventilation shafts."_

Nemon lifted his head at those words and exchanged a look with Car.

    "The bang… I'm sure I heard a gunshot in all that chaos, just before Jenna screamed." He recalled flustered and the Zar'tak gave him a slow nod. Jenna remembered the moment in the MedBay:

_Suddenly the light went out, Car, Jenna and Nemon wheeled around in start, there was a loud bang and out of nowhere a green glow lightened the dark room around her._

She typed something new and raised the pad for everyone to see.

 

    _When I turned around your eyes were glowing and you had your mouth opened so wide I thought you would attack me. But now that I know how your powers work, I think you rather moved something with telekinesis, right?_

The Zar'tak dipped his head in another nod and she thought she could see a delighted glint in those big eyes.

    _"Correct, although I apologize for appearing so hostile back then, it was a threatening gesture meant only for the traitor. Yes, I stopped the projectile with my powers before it could pierce your skin. You wouldn't have noticed anything from the shot, the tracking device was as small as a scurf."_ He explained and Set's antennae perked.

    "An _Irken_ tracker." He grumbled angry and again the Zar'tak nodded, affirming.

     _"A very delicate piece of engineering, indeed, thus I knew he could not be one of Xakahr's ordinary henchmen and decided to watch Jenna even closer."_

"Hold on a second!" Car interposed and Nemon looked as if he had been thinking the same, the way he glanced at her. "Then how come Nemon and I couldn't see what scared Jenna so badly? All we saw was… well, darkness. I'm sure I wouldn't have missed your eyes glowing like that!" the Vortian pointed out and now the Zar'tak looked clearly embarrassed.

    _"I have to admit, actually nobody was supposed to see me act, not even her. But please bear in mind that all of this happened within splits of seconds and I wasn't aware of his intentions until I sensed the tracker gun. I wasn't able to engulf Jenna in the same illusion as you and the doctor because she was standing right between me and my target. You have to understand;_ Darkness _is a very complicated illusion to cast, yet easier if my target is not in my field of vision, so I can simply" block it out". But stopping a projectile, fired from just across the room, and engulfing something in Darkness that is right in my focus  at the same time, is… difficult, even for me. If I had known beforehand how Jenna would react to my… demonstration, I would have let the tracker hit to remove it later."_ He admitted.

Nemon sighed, exhausted.

    "Well, at least that explains why you showed up in front of her quarters that one night. In truth you were the one chasing off the tech and not the other way round, right?" he concluded. But Car wasn't satisfied yet.

    "But all of this still doesn't explain why you followed her all the way into the MedBay! You said you only knew of the Vortian's intentions the moment you sensed the gun on him. So you couldn't possibly have known that an assassin would strike here out of all places! And even if you knew, it would have been much easier and less complicated to wait for him to make his move outside in the hallway." She threw in distrustfully and this time Jenna thought spotting a caught expression on his face when he turned his attention towards Car.  

 _"I… I have to admit that I was... intrigued. Everyone was talking about this strange alien that had dared to openly oppose the Admiral and destroyed an entire space station under the command of one of the most vicious Irken generals in history, just to save the life of an Irken invader. It sounded… fascinating. I never meant to scare her, and I regret that it came to all of this because I wasn't in full possession of my abilities… my kind has grown weaker ever since the war started. I shouldn't have waited upon your return but eliminated the traitor myself."_ He said to Set, but the invader shook his head, which seemed to astonish the Zar'tak.

    "No… we never would've come to know about his deal with the Tallest if you had killed him beforehand. I… I suppose I should've mentioned Jenna's, well, _keen_ survival instinct." Set replied, plainly contrite, and rubbed Jenna's arms apologetically. But she just sank back against him and smiled, she wasn't blaming him for what had happened, none of them.

Then a thought hit her and she raised a hand to type on the datapad. With a short glimpse towards Set she finished the text and showed it to the Zar'tak. When he had read it, he opened his mouth and his four arms folded against his body, trying to make him appear smaller, which was hard considering his height and the long limbs.

 

    _You were waiting for me in the hallway yesterday, and I remember how you reached out a hand. Now I know that you were trying to contact me through telepathy because the feeling was the same as it is now, that humming in my head. And Car told me that you tried the same with her, when she was disguised as me, as if you were trying to tell me something… did you want to warn me?_

From behind her Set let out an outraged hiss that made the telepath flinch in start; apparently the mere attempt of initiating any contact to her would have been a grave violation of his contract.

Under the alert, appraising eyes of the other rebels, the Zar'tak grew more and more nervous while he was visibly struggling for an answer. The voice in their minds, which had been so clear until now, dissolved back into a humming, like the static background noise of a TV.

The only one able to move was Car, taking a step towards the Zar'tak, yet the two spider legs snapping out of Set's Pak stopped her on the spot. The invader rose from the stretcher, his crimson eyes fixed on the other alien in cold contempt. Jenna tried to hold him back but the Irken was at the end of his patience.

    "Alright, I've hear enough. You weren't supposed to let her see you, yet you showed up at her work more than once. You were to stay in the background and only act upon imminent danger, yet you deliberately confronted her in the open. But above all, you were forbidden to talk to her! I gave you _explicit_ orders, and as far as I know you're kind is fabled for abiding by them wihtout any deviation, which makes you remarkable killers if you got the coin… even better than the Djelb. The only reason for you to flout _my_ orders would be a _second_ client…", Set growled with barely contained rage and allowed the Zar'tak to recoil from him until his back collided with the opposite wall and he couldn't flee any further. Tork and Nemon exchanged an alarmed look and even Car didn't seem all that convinced of the Zar'tak's clean slate anymore. Jenna could only stare at the two of them, a mixture of fright and guilt on her face.

Somehow the Zar'tak managed to find his voice again, despite the razor-sharp spider legs looming menacingly above him.

    _"N- no, I- I just wanted to…"_ the telepath stammered intimidated and now his panicked voice induced a painful headache in all of them as he tried to speak up for himself. But Set's eyes made it quite plain to see that he was done with excuses. He raised the spider legs higher, ready to eviscerate the Zar'tak if he wouldn't come out with the truth in the next seconds.

The green eyes darted back and forth between the flashing metal legs and the door, and came to a halt on Jenna. The black alien seemed to calm down for a moment, before his eyes started glowing again, brighter than ever. Everyone held their breath, terrified of what he would do next, of what he _could_ do.

    _"I am sorry…",_  he just said, regretful. Before anyone could react, his frame gave up its shape completely, the black skin dispersed from his body like wisps of smoke, engulfing the Zar'tak. In the blink of an eye he was gone.

Set roared in fury and kicked at the chair Jak had sat on. Tork ran out of room, calling for the guards. Nemon and Reliat both had similarly stunned but also fascinated looks on their faces, while Car had clapped her hands over her mouth.

Jenna just kept staring at the spot where the alien had pressed against the wall a moment ago, her eyes wide open. Everybody was talking across each other yet no one seemed to notice her silence. She had heard something else, and judging by her friend's confusion it hadn't been meant for them.  
  


    _They're not ready yet._        

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And now you all get to guess and wonder who the myseterious contractee might be :>> oh, and what it is that Reliat found out on the Massive that's so darn important for Jenna to recuperate quickly~ Questions, questions~~


	72. Sovereign and Servant

###  **\- 27 Sovereign and Servant -**

_A few moments later - Planet of the Resistance - MedBay wing 23-2_

 

    "I can't believe I got double crossed by that freak!" Set growled for the third time and this time Jenna had trouble not to roll her eyes at it.

   After the Zar'tak's escape Tork had immediately issued all disposable guards to look for the fugitive telepath. The Commander himself had headed back to the Resistance's headquarters at the edge of the air field, to meet up with his lieutenants and the other Commanders to plan the evacuation and which measures to take concerning the Zar'tak. The Vortian was just as fuming with rage as Set, indignant that he had not only been betrayed by one, but two members of the Resistance, without having any idea about either of them. Car was in no better mood; she felt guilty for releasing the Zar'tak, and thus probably having endangered Jenna once more. So it fell to Reliat to comfort her which was why the two of them left Jenna soon after Tork and Nemon had taken their leave. Jenna didn't bear them any ill will. Most of all she was just glad that none of them had gotten hurt in all of this and that Reliat had survived the assault on the _Massive,_ although she couldn't help but notice how much he had changed since the attack, the way he kept silent for most of the time, making notes on his datapad without ever looking up from it was, frankly, a little bit odd and didn't seem like the usually so outgoing and talkative Ilenian. Not to mention those particular _insights_ Tork had mentioned that even seemed to unsettle Nemon. Before Nemon had left them, Reliat had uploaded his current set of notes on the doctor's own datapad so he could read his student's theories for himself.

After everybody had taken their leave, Set wanted to lock the door, but when he remembered that the Zar'tak was able to teleport in and out any room at his own leisure he left it unlocked, not without hissing furiously at the metal door though, before he returned to Jenna's stretcher to settle down behind her and wrap his arms tightly around her body to guard her.

Now she palmed over his new arm, hesitantly, feeling small seams and edges in the smooth metal beneath her skin. It was a massive construct, the wiring and hydraulic systems elegantly hidden under solid layers of titanium, platinum and alien compounds, and although it looked way too massive and inflexible to move like an actual limb, its motions were smooth and quick. It seemed as though the more he used the arm the better it worked. The crimson lights at the inside of the synthetic biceps, the lower arm and between the joints of his metal fingers were pulsing faintly with every breath he took, reflected in the chromed titanium, just like her face; tired and beaten up as it was.

Jenna ran her fingers over the cool, smooth surface once more and thought that it felt very dead. But she would take the prosthesis over anything else any day and she was relieved that it was _just_ his arm that had been taken from her.

She felt the rolling growl in his chest again, vibrating against her back and this time she exhaled audibly, the only sound she felt capable of emitting without hurting her abused throat to show him she had been listening to his rants.

    "When I get my hands on this traitorous sonofa-…" the Irken hissed on darkly, the fingers of his metal hand closing around an invisible throat, choking. Jenna tucked at the leg of his sleeveless overall, causing him to pause in his venting and look down on her, finally torn from his homicidal musing. On the flick of her hand he gave her the activated datapad from the night stand next to her hospital bed, watching her quickly type away in silence. She was getting better at it, she realized.

 

    _He seemed very upset and sorry about what he did. I don't think he has any bad intentions, or the one who hired him beside you._ ,

 

she admitted, looking back over her shoulder to observe his reaction. Set frowned; it didn't require any words to know that he wasn't agreeing with her at all. Now Jenna _did_ roll her eyes. Might be that he was now more sensitive and empathetic than before their trip to Zim's, but not any less stubborn once he was profoundly convinced of something at all, and she knew it was no use trying to convince him of the contrary, it would actually only make him more relentless. Thus she dropped the topic and just sank back against him once more, contented in the fact that he was back and by her side. Moreover she had to admit that she felt a lot safer having him around. The very sound of his breath slowed her heartbeat and the weight of his strong arms around her body (even the one made of cold, dead metal) took some of the pain away. Not only were her face and neck a single throbbing epicenter of _pain_ , but also her already healing ribs had suffered a nasty bashing. Jenna was actually surprised that the Vortian's vicious kicks hadn't broken a few of them all over again.

After pondering for a few seconds she lifted the datapad again.

 

    _What do you think will Tork do now? Where is he going to take us? There are so many rebels here… I can hardly imagine that we can evacuate them all in time._

 

Set read as she typed and shrugged (very carefully) the second she was done.

    "He said he meant to take the rebels to the outposts… but I don't know any more about his plans myself yet. I assume he'll convene a council of us soon enough. Well, me and the other Commanders once he's decided on who will form the rest of the final council to lead the Resistance." He answered and cocked a brow at the confused look she gave him, but he sensed what she meant to ask before she even placed a fingertip on the pad's screen. "Why me of all people?" Set chuckled quietly, "Right, I never told you until now… he made me his SIC before we reached the _Massive_ ; I was to take charge of his team in case he would die and carry out our... mission." The invader explained, quickly masking the slight hitch in his words by straightening his back in pride when her mouth fell open in delighted astonishment. Jenna hugged him and he returned her embrace with a chirp, nuzzling his face into her hair, unable to let go.

Greedily he took in her smell with the tip of his tongue and antennae, felt the warmth radiating from her and indulged in the feeling of her body pressing against his own, so soft and small and yet so unbelievably strong. She lifted her face from his chest with a big smile, her eyes gleaming, green like the giant plants he had seen on Earth. He trawled his memory for the term her species had given them. _Trees_. Yes, her eyes were of that same color, dark and vivid. He saw the trust in them, her affection, and suddenly he was overwhelmed by the urge to just take one of the bigger ships from the hangars and bring her far, far away from here, away from the war and misery, to a planet just like the one she described the night before he'd left.

Set pulled her closer again and ran his fingers, the real ones, the ones with which he could still truly feel, through her hair. That soft, smooth, beautiful weirdness that was her hair and that he'd come to love so fiercely.

    "Tork killed Xakahr." He whispered next to her ear and felt how her breath caught in her throat. "He had been meaning to do it much earlier already, but there had never been the right opportunity, until he launched the assault on the armada. It was never our plan to get all the way to the Tallest but Xakahr separated me from Tork's team before he could make his move. Nobody can know of this." Set added pointedly and she gave a quick nod. Set sighed, of course she wouldn't tell anyone, but he was relieved he had someone to share this with.

Suddenly she trembled in his arms and he glanced down at her, alarmed, but when she opened her mouth, her free hand clasping over it and her eyes clenched shut, he realized that she was yawning. Grinning, Set rubbed the small of her back and kissed her softly. "You should get some rest, I'll stay with you." He hummed affectionately and lay down on his side. Jenna followed suit, sliding up a bit to get as close to him as she could, closing her eyes. He took the datapad from her hands, turned it off and put it aside before resting his cheek on his hand to watch her fall asleep.

 

Nightmares troubled her, but they were interrupted over and over by Jenna jerking from her restive sleep, drenched in sweat, looking around with wild eyes. But every time she opened her eyes in terror, the room was dark and empty, save for Set who had fallen asleep next to her. Breathing heavily and shaking all over, she sank back on the stretcher and snuggled up against his warm chest, praying that his presence would also keep the bad dreams from her.

Her hopes proved to be futile though. When she closed her eyes again the nightmares returned, more versatile and realistic than ever before. She saw the rebel planet burning while she floated through space, surrounded by the armada's ships, and she screamed in despair but no sound left her lips. She raised her hands, grabbing at her throat but as soon as her fingers closed around her neck they clawed into the skin, squeezing, as if they had a mind of their own. A giant, crimson orb appeared before her, like a single eye, searching for her, watching her die... Jenna couldn't move, her own hands were choking her mercilessly and squeezed harder until her vision blurred…

And she woke with a loud gasp that set her larynx ablaze. She had tears in her eyes and she wanted to jerk up her hands to her throat to shake off whatever was choking her, but found she couldn't move a muscle. Panicking all over again, she tried to lift her arms, her legs and finally her head. That worked, surprisingly, and she twisted and craned her neck around, looking for the source of her immobility. Jenna had rolled over on the other side in her sleep, so now she was looking at the dark wall, her back against Set's chest. Her frantic breathing stopped completely when something _physically_ dissolved from the darkness before her, as if the black of the shadows became a shape of its own. Five green eyes opened inside the shadow avatar and now his form fastened, thickened and gained more contours as he stepped closer and a soft humming poked at the edges of her mind, as though asking politely to enter. Strangely enough Jenna calmed down once she had recognized the Zar'tak and stopped fighting the invisible chains. She sensed that he didn't mean to do her any harm, he simply wanted her to keep from jerking around and wake the invader next to her.

As if to confirm her assumption he raised a plump, paw-like finger to his mouth and his eyes gave a warning pulse of green light. Jenna nodded and felt the cautiously pushing buzz at the edge of her consciousness thicken into a voice inside her head. The process was still weird and if she had been able to move at all she would probably have shuddered at the sensation.

The Zar'tak hunkered down in front of the stretcher so their eyes met on one level and she didn't have to strain her neck. He shot the sleeping Irken behind her a short glimpse before his eyes trailed back to her own.

    _"I have sensed your dreams."_ He simply stated, as if that was enough of an explanation for his appearance. But there was more he was sending her telepathically than just mere words; Jenna felt a wave of curiosity in his presence and something else, something troubled and conflicted. Was it fear? No, not fear, more… concern. Jenna's eyes widened in fascination at the alien contact, but it seemed like she couldn't respond. She tried to focus her thoughts, tried to somehow channel them into an answer and return the telepathic contact to ask him how it was possible for him to sense her dreams. But he only shook his head as if something had stung him, his mouth twisting into a slight snarl.

 _"Please… don't try to answer this way, it is most uncomfortable to receive both of your conscious thoughts and the chaos of your subconsciousness_   _at once. Believe me, no species has ever evolved the necessary mental capacity and strength to be able to communicate with my kind through telepathy besides receiving. I know, you are very confused and you have a lot of questions, but I'm afraid I can't tell you everything at this point. My sovereign wants to wait and see what the Ilenian scientists might discover."_

That sounded so vague and mysterious that Jenna frowned reflexively. While she didn't directly mistrust that name- and faceless _sovereign,_ she had learned by now to be very wary of anything she didn't fully see through.  
  
Of course the Zar'tak noticed her change of mood and swayed his cobra-like head. _"They can not reveal themselves at the time being… there is just too much at stake for them, should you not be ready…_ you _most of all. Actually I am not supposed to even speak to you about any of this before they have declared you are prepared enough."_

His expression softened, as far as it was possible for his reptilian face, and his eyes narrowed slightly as if he was smiling at her. _"But I also sensed your courage, your resolve and your potential, even from afar. You might just be strong enough to do the impossible, what my sovereign and their kind failed to do themselves. But you will have to make sacrifices, sacrifices that will seem too grave to you. But you can not hesitate… must not."_ He mused on inside her head and now seemed to be talking more to himself than to her.

Jenna furrowed her brow in confusion, shaking her head. She didn't understand a thing the Zar'tak was talking about and his words were only raising more and more questions. Fear clawed at her, a feeling of absolute reluctance. The words sounded like the dubious prophecies of a county fair fortuneteller and they reminded her so much of what Nemon had said to her aboard the _Rebellion_ , how some of the crew members were seeing her as some sort of omen or harbinger of good fortune, a heavenly _lucky charm_ or some crap like that. And she baulked against this idea, physically even, so hard that the Zar'tak's face twitched and his five eyes widened a good bit when her body _jerked_ despite his force field.

    _"So strong…"_ he uttered in her head, his voice shaking, but before she could get to know what he meant she felt Set stirring beside her. In the blink of an eye the Zar'tak was gone again, a fine wisp of smoke coiling where he had been crouching just then. Not a second later the paralysis fell from her and she shuddered, goose bumps covering every inch of her skin. Set mumbled in his half sleep and wrapped his right arm around her middle to pull her against his body.

    "Had a bad dream?" he asked, his voice heavy and slurred with sleep, and pressed little kisses on her naked shoulder where the gown had slipped off, tickling the skin with his tongue and nibbling gently at it with pointy teeth. Jenna trembled violently beneath the touch and under all her confusion and distress she noticed her own desire awakening when the tall Irken drew her closer and she could feel his hard muscles pressing against her back. Involuntarily she imagined them tensing while he was thrusting into her and felt the sudden sting of need in her lower abdomen, so distinctly that a stuttering sigh slipped unbidden past her lips.

Set immediately stopped pecking her shoulder and looked down at her face in surprise. She shot him a quick, embarrassed glance, her skin already hot and flushed and she was one hundred percent convinced he could see her blushing even in the dark. In the pale light of the life support machines she saw how he raised his antennae, the crimson eyes big with bafflement. But that lasted only one second before a wolfish grin parted his lips to flash sharp teeth at her while he leaned in cloer. "Well, well…" Set hummed darkly. Hearing his voice this close to her ear made her shiver again; her body knew exactly what was to follow this particular sound and reacted way faster than she preferred. Jenna noticed the wetness between her legs and exhaled shakily. For a moment she remembered that Nemon had told her not to overstrain herself, with which he had also meant any form of _bedroom_ exercises, but she wanted it so _badly_ , needed it! She needed Set's hands on her body, his breath against her skin and the entire, incredible strength of his body over her to forget how afraid she was in reality.

Torn between her needs and her bad conscience she wasn't able to protest when he rolled her around to face him, letting his right hand wander over her stomach and side. The soft touch was enough to set her skin on fire and she inhaled pantingly, arching her back to meet his touch. Set laughed quietly, slipped his hand under the gown she was wearing and cupped her ass to pull her up and kiss her. His tongue sidled through her lips and coiled around hers, pulling it into his mouth to deal it tender bites. Jenna made a surprised noise at that and was already about to push her arms against his chest and stop him, when his fingers found her hot, wet entrance, and her raised hands only clutched at the fabric of his overall and she _moaned._

Set was grinning under her parted lips as he pushed one, then both fingers in between her folds, plunging them deeper with relish.

    "Did you really miss me so much? You've never been this _soaked_." He purred, gently biting the skin of her lower jaw what made her sighs reach a new octave as he moved his fingers in and out faster, pushing them slightly apart, stretching her out. Jenna would've gladly answered him, would have loved to tell him what she needed, what she wanted, hell, that he should just _fuck_ her without regard for her injuries, but she didn't trust her voice enough to use it for anything other than moaning and gasping out loud.

But Set already seemed to know exactly what to do with her because he pulled his fingers out with a wet noise and turned her around on her other side again, his breath shallow from arousal when he yanked her body back against his chest. His erection was already pushing at her butt through his overall and Set rocked his hips into her, his tongue teasing the rim of her ear. Jenna moaned quietly and bent her arm back over her head to reach for his antennae, rubbing them between her fingertips until the invader uttered a throaty groan, slipping a hand between them to open his overall. His left hand, the metal one, wedged forth from underneath Jenna's waist to feel for her soft slit. When the cold metal brushed over her folds she sucked in air between her teeth, surprised, but the mechanical fingers were moving with a purpose and so deftly over her clit that she was already panting after a few strokes, rocking her hips into his hand along with his movements to get even more friction.

"Don't be so greedy, you're supposed to take it easy, remember?" he teased her and let his fingers thrust into her again, from the front this time, bending them upwards to get to her other sensitive spot. Jenna gave a protesting whine and grabbed his hand with her free one to pull it back onto her clit while she grinded her ass against his freed erection, catching the wet tip between them.

    "Shit…" Set growled hoarse, lifted her leg over his right arm and slid his cock in between her wet lips, probing her entrance with his hard tip and reveled in her already breathless gasps. Then he thrust into her, deeply, and Jenna had to clench her teeth not to scream. "Oh, _shit_!" Set groaned strained, pulled out halfway and plunged back in, making her cry out in pleasure now after all. Jenna arched her back when he found a steady pace to roll and rock his hips into her unrestrained, his one hand rubbing her clit in hard, small circles, the other one digging into the inside of her thigh to keep her in place while he fucked her, lost in his thrusts.

She only noticed the wet slapping sound at the edge of her mind - her raspy moans and his exerted panting all the more though - and felt her climax coming closer and closer. Set licked over her ear, running sharp teeth over it, pulling her back from her high with the unexpected sting. The tireless metal hand caressing her spread her folds further apart to better get at her clit, rolling the small, swollen nub between his fingers, pinching, pulling, rubbing. Her walls clenched around his cock when his touches got even more intense and she whimpered fitfully in the rhythm of his thrusts.

She was so close; her hand that had caressed his antennae had fallen limply on his shoulder and all she could do was hold onto him, her fingers clawing into his skin and she wanted to scream, wanted to beg him to push her over the edge and yet she could only moan out in wanton abandon. She was barely able to breathe under the tight neck brace and her heart was impending to burst out of her chest, but it only took her closer, so close!

Set felt her orgasm building up and pushed all the deeper, the tightness of her clenching walls caused even more friction and she felt him swell inside her. "So good…" he praised breathlessly, already close himself and let his fingers circle over her clit so hard her moans turned into little cries, "you feel so good, Jenna… come on, come for me."

And she came; with a husky, desperate moan that made her throat burn and her nails digging into his bare skin, all tension built up inside her erupted, sending wave on wave of pleasure through her body, numbing her brain. She only noticed at the edge of her consciousness that Set followed her shortly after, moaning deeply, and with jerky, weak thrusts, he spilled hot into her and pressed her so tight against him that pain flashed through her ribs. But she didn't care.

Jenna sank back exhausted, her body feeling boneless and numb and sated. Her hand slumped off his shoulder onto the stretcher and he grabbed it with his right hand to weave his fingers through hers and press their intertwined hands against her warm chest. She was still riding out her orgasm, literally, sliding back and forth over his hard cock, sighing hoarsely at the little bursts of pleasure it still gave her, like aftershocks of an earthquake. In secrecy she was glad that his member didn't go limp like that of a human, this way she could push back on him easily, enjoying this aftermath even more.

Set nuzzled his chin into the parting of her hair and tried to catch his own breath. His metal hand kept stroking her mound gently, squeezing from time to time, and she trembled again at the teasing touches, writhing into his palm to seek more contact. Set slowly lowered her leg and reached around her to slip his hand under the thin, sweat-soaked hospital gown and get to her breasts, squeezing and kneading them tenderly and rubbing her nipples until she was shivering, raising her hand back up to deal little pulls to his antennae that made the Irken growl in lust.

But in the end they were both too spent to jump all over each other again. Jenna swallowed tentatively and felt the pain in her throat worse than before. Nemon would surely notice that as well when he examined her the next time. But still, she didn't care.

Carefully, Set turned her over so he could look at her, a tired, crooked grin on his face as he dipped his head to kiss her passionately, pulling his long, thin tongue through her lips. She sighed quietly, the endorphins in her brain had left the Zar'tak's words seem no more than a bad dream and she snuggled up against his chest, gratefully, hooking her leg through his to get even closer to his body while Set wrapped his arms around her, tenderly pressing her head against the hollow of his throat.

    "So… you don't mind it." He murmured into her hair and she laid back her head to look up to him. She raised an eyebrow in confusion and shook her head, she had no idea what he was talking about, why he thought she would have minded about anything that had just happened. He moved the metal fingers of his hand that was cupping the back of her head in response, which caused a quiet whirring. "The arm. I saw the way you flinched away from it earlier… I thought…" he fell silent when she turned her head around to plant a long kiss on the smooth, cold titanium-forged palm. It made him sad that he couldn't actually _feel_ it, only the vague sensation that his Pak was translating, but more than anything he was relieved that she didn't mind. His thoughts travelled back to the two new emotions he had come across since his departure: the conflicted moment in the _Massive_ 's hangar when he was shooting the Irken solders and the soft feeling in the MedBay's entrance hall, the mother hugging her son.

Jenna listened intently as he told her about those feelings and indicated him to hand her the datapad. Set watched her brooding over the dimly lit screen, her finger hovering over the display, her brows drawn together thoughtfully. Finally she typed a longer text and turned the pad towards him with a smile. The invader read the lines curiously, eager to learn what his feelings meant.

 

    _I believe you now see the Irkens in another light. You know that they actually are not to blame for being under the Hive's influence through their Paks and can't decide for themselves, the way you can. Truth is, they are innocent and you would sooner free them from their shackles than kill them. It's good you feel this way, and it doesn't mean you're weak! But rather that you're just._

His eyes grew round and he nodded slowly. She was right, he knew now that there was a way to free the other Irkens from the Codes and he found himself wondering if the war could be ended by simply wresting the Irkens from the Hive's control. It was worth a shot, he concluded and reminded himself to bring this possibility up next time he was meeting with Tork.

Jenna gave him a big smile and kept typing on the pad. She looked like she was having fun writing down her thoughts like that, which, in turn, made him smile when she showed him the datapad once more.

 

    _For the other emotion… there is no real word for it. Maybe relief? I can only describe it the way I felt it back then when you found me in the MedBay on the_ Massive _. I had lost all hope of ever seeing you again, and then you were suddenly there, you were alive and you had come looking for me. I was so relieved that I didn't care what might happen. You were there and you held me like a believed lost treasure… it was the most wonderful I've ever felt. And when you tore that cruiser apart just to save me I felt it again, this infinite relief and love. I love you, Set._

She had written the last sentence in her own language, the script of her species and it sounded so different from Vortian. It sounded warmer, realer. Set dropped the datapad carelessly behind him and pulled her into his arms to kiss her. Jenna sighed, surprised by his ardor and returned the kiss. Her hands wrapped around his nape and pressed against him, the heat of her body burning on his naked skin but it was nothing compared to the warmth he felt inside.

    "I love you…" he breathed against her lips and now she knew that he fully realized what it meant.

They held each other, exchanging looks and kisses and enjoyed the feeling lingering in their bodies until they finally fell asleep  __         

   

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_**© ThetruemeK** _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ♥♥♥♥♥
> 
> I love me some lovin' and plot-thickenin' guys :3
> 
> I'm happy to announce that my new apartment is t h e b o m b. The internet is crazy fast lemme tell ya x'D I'm moving in on Wednesday and I'mmmmm maybe playing with the thought of doing some livestreams now and then?? Ah, we'll see :D 
> 
> (I just thought: the Zar'tak was totally standing in a corner, watching them smash from the shadows x'D)


	73. Sovereign and Servant - Pt. 2

###  **\- 27 Sovereign and Servant -**

******Part 2**

  
The Zar'tak stayed untraceable the next two cycles as well and they were soon assuming that he might have somehow slipped off the planet and was long gone by now. Set was quite alright with that; the longer the telepath stayed gone the more he relaxed and didn’t insist on guarding Jenna every waking hour while she was recuperating.

   Car and Jak were regular visitors, whereas Jak tended to stay longer than Car to talk to Jenna about their time on the _Massive_ and what had happened after her escape. Although he had been locked up in a cell on the lowermost deck of the Irken warship, the old Vortian had caught a surprising amount of what was going on. And thus Jenna came to know the name of the traitor who had tried to kidnap her by order of the Tallest: Mik.

   Jak told her that Mik had been locked up in the same prison wing he had been in. He used to belong to the crew of a ship of the Resistance, bound for home, loaded to the brim with supplies, fresh recruits and war-fugitives hoping to find a better place among the rebels. The ship was ambushed by the armada after her Commander had ignored the warning of a nearby outpost that the _Massive_ had been sighted in that quadrant, desperate to take the quickest route back to Home Base.

   A team of Irken fighter pilots had taken out the ship’s engines, leaving it helpless to the _Massive_ ’s tractor beam that seized the ship. Half of the crew was slaughtered brutally in the following fight, as the few surviving passengers told the other prisoners, their Commander the last to fall, viciously trying to take as many Irkens with him. The rest of the crew surrendered immediately after their captain had been torn to pieces by the spider legs of an Irken elite, and were thrown into the already overcrowded cells in the giant belly of the _Massive_.

   Then the questioning began.

Jak told her with empty eyes how the screams of the captured rebels rang through the entire prison wing, day and night, for countless cycles. The Tallest were apparently hellbent on discovering the location of the Resistance’s base of operations, and spared no effort to get it out of the captured rebels. In the midst of the fight the new recruits had failed to rid themselves of the silver bands, the only official mark the Resistance dared to use, and which had become fairly known throughout the galaxy by then. So the Irken leaders knew for a certainty that their most recent prisoners belonged to the dreaded Resistance and tried everything to get the desired information out of them.

Mik was one of the few Vortians who, miraculously, survived the brutal torture-sessions until the end, albeit more dead than alive, an empty husk of a Vortian, with haunted eyes and afraid of his own shadow. And then one day, roughly a week before Jenna ended up in the cell next to Jak, he was just gone. Jak had always assumed that he must’ve perished silently but now it was obvious that the Tallest had taken him out of his cell to strike a deal with him. Numbed and subdued as he had become he would’ve probably done anything to get his freedom.

   Jenna ponderred on what he had told her and was surprised that she felt pity for Mik. She had been in those cells herself, forced to fight for her life. At one point she might have given up as well, too weak to keep on fighting, if it hadn’t been for Ria and the Pakrit. Her sacrifice had saved her life and spared her from a miserable death inside an Irken prison cell, beaten down into a lifeless husk without the will to keep on living.

   Once more she felt seething rage building up inside her as she thought about what the Tallest had done to the former scientist. Even after Jak had left her she kept staring at her own hands, lost in thoughts, imagining how she would love to rip out their throats and make them feel the same pain Ria had suffered in her last moments, to smash their Paks and destroy whatever was keeping the Irkens under its heel. But without the unearthly power of the Pakrit she was just a tiny human. Weak, small, and no match for the two Irken leaders.

   And she _hated_ it.

 

_Two cycles after the Zar'tak disappeared – Resistance HQ – 32 days and 5 hours after abduction_

 

Tork leaned back in his high chair, his eyes narrowing slightly as he gave each of the Commanders and scientists at the table a scrutinizing look-over. He wasn’t nearly half as pleased with what he saw as he would have liked to be, and the more he looked at them the worse his mood got.

    Half of the twelve Commanders seated at the oval table were too stout, their vainly decorated overalls tautly stretched by their girth and the first Commander couldn’t help but blink in confusion. He knew them all, but he had never realized how they could have gotten so _fat_. They were meeting his gaze out of heavy-lidded eyes, bored. One of them even dared to look impatiently at his Chronometer. Tork had to focus not to snap at him, and he pushed back his chair to stand up. He needed to get rid of his angry energy, and preferably not by punching all of them in the face, so he paced back and forth in front of the narrow window behind his chair.

    “Thank you for attending this council, Commanders. Are we complete?” He started, pausing in his steps to face them, his hands crossed loosely on his back, straightening himself.

An older Commander with hollw, spotted cheeks of a pale, greyish pink cleared his throat. He was so old that his horns were big and curled, and his overall had faded into a dark grey - a real old-timer. Tork was relieved that he was the first to answer. The old Vortian was known only as The Captain; once a fabled pilot and freelancer he was one of the first to join the Resistance (at that time still called the “Resisty” under Lard Nar) and had soon become one of the most feared pirates in the galaxy, destroying Irken space stations and outposts left and right, and once came pretty close to destroying the _Massive_ single-handedly, before he had ran out of fuel and was forced to hijack an Irken Voot-cruiser to escape.

    “As complete as we’re like to get, laddie. _Pardon_ , first Commander; Please continue.” The old pilot chuckled deeply and gave Tork a wicked smile. The younger Commander returned the smile with a grin. By all rights The Captain should have become the first Commander long ago, but he had declined to ever holding that honor when Lard Nar, the founder of the Resistance and original first Commander, was executed by the Tallest. Instead the leadership had fallen to Xakahr, seven stellar cycles ago, and he had refitted the title into “Admiral”. Both Tork and The Captain had served under Xakahr and had witness his descend into sheer arrogance that soon gave birth to his mad vision of an Empire of his own. To be honest, it wouldn’t have surprised Tork at all if Xakahr had been planning to form an alliance with the Irkens after establishing his Empire.

    “Thank you, Captain. I am going to repeat myself when I say that I don’t want to lead the Resistance alone. The purpose of this meeting is to decide who of you shall help me form a council that will steer this ship to victory. We all have witnessed that a single leader can do more harm than good to our cause, and Xakahr’s bold attack might have easily taken more than his life if it hadn’t been for invader Set to aid us.”

The morose muttering that followed his words made the Commander frown and it took all his composure not to grind his teeth at it. Convincing the Commanders to accept the Irken invader as his Second in Command was still proving to be a good bit of work.

   He overlooked the discontented noise around him but made notice of every Commander who was uttering his displeasure, and found that almost all of them were those of a much wider girth. Apparently they had been benefitting from Xakahr’s idleness, sitting on the planet instead of roaming the reaches of space for survivors and fugitives, fighting off nosy Irken scouts as Tork had ever since he had become Commander of his own ship. How could Vortians, born fighters, get so very fat and lazy?

   “But now we have even more pressing matters at hand: The Tallest turned one of our men into a traitor, to kidnap a sworn member of the Resistance to turn her in to them and to reveal the location of our Base. As a measure of precaution I have dispatched two scores of my ship’s pilots to establish more outposts around our system and warn us when the armada comes within our sensor’s reach. However, we can’t just sit here and wait for them to find us: we need to evacuate the planet… and launch a full-scale counterattack.”

While the fat Commanders had been listening to his speech more asleep than really lively, his last words clearly woke them with a jerk. They raised their voices in wild protest, however their voices were the only thing they raised, outraged he would have them leave their comfy life on the home planet (or spirits forbade, even those _chairs_ ) to take up arms against an armada that was far too powerful for them to ever defeat.

   A very corpulent, red faced Vortian piped over the noise, his cheeks jiggling with every word he spat out in indignation: “This is _madness_! You can’t possibly be serious about this, Commander Tork! We don’t have nearly enough soldiers or pilots to face the armada in an open conflict! I say again, you are mad, sir!”

   Tork watched, rather astonished, as he observed how the speaker’s cheeks wobbled and jiggled and he couldn’t keep his lips from curling into a thin, crooked smile. The keg-bellied Commander received nods and assertive grunts from his fellow cheek-jiggling neighbors once he was done spitting out the obvious and he gave a pleased look around in turn. Tork narrowed his eyes again while he recalled what he knew about this one.

    His name was Poruk, another old member of the Resistance who had been a former galactic council member back in the days, and quite successful in negotiating with the Ilenians to form an even tighter alliance between their two species. Tork frowned, the Resistance could have definitely used someone with a little bit of diplomatic skill to bargain with neutral planets. But he wasn’t in any way essential to the council Tork was about to forge from this lot. He crossed Poruk off his mental list.

    “You mistake my intentions, Commander Poruk. I never said anything about attacking the _armada_ , mind you.” He said in a cheerful tone and enjoyed the confusion that spread on their faces. With a quick tap on the oval table he activated the holographic screen embedded into the tabletop and brought up the image of a planet, slowly turning inside a single ring of ice and stone.

   Irk.

If the commanders had been outraged before, they were now shocked into speechlessness.

   “Judging from the collective silence I assume you all know this planet and I don’t need to explain my intentions any further.” Tork commented dryly and zoomed out of the stellar map, until the scale was wide enough to also include the Resistance’s Home Planet which was almost at the other side of the galaxy that turned lazily around its bright center. Tork made a mental note to ask Jenna what name her species had given this galaxy. Ever since the galactic council was formed the official designation had been “United Galaxy”. What a load of presumptuous crap.

   The Commanders were still just staring at him, gaping. All but The Captain and the other, leaner half of them. They had a hard, determined glimmer in their eyes, and he knew he would have to form his council mostly around them. Tork shot a glance towards the ten scientists (mostly Ilenians) on the other side of the table, opposing the Commanders. A great part of them had gone pale but they looked intrigued enough to keep his hopes up.

   Poruk had somehow found his voice again: “Y- you can’t mean to… we never… this is, this is-“

   “ _Madness_ , Poruk?” Tork helped him out and shook his head, “It is more than doable, really, once we know where to strike. Then we won’t even need our full force, just another stealth team and the fleet to cover them. Now, the details of this mission are rather delicate, and I would only disclose them to those of you that are willing to do anything to end this war, no matter the cost. Anybody else should leave this council at once. But before you go, I shall give you something else to consider: The human, Jenna.”

   He leaned forward again and touched another button on the table’s touch pad. The stellar map vanished and instead the holographic screen played the recordings of Jenna’s fights on two different displays on each side. The first one showed her fight against the Irken mass-murderer called the Butcher, the second one her destroying Lenka’s battle-mecha and her space station. In both videos her eyes were glowing in a terrible crimson light that seemed to lick out of her eyes like flames come to life. Her incredible strength was plain to see, the force of her raw power almost sensible even through the small screens. In those videos she was more a vengeful spirit than really a person and he saw the same thought written plainly on the faces of the Commanders and scientists around him.

   One of the scientists, a renonwed expert on Meekrobian weaponry, frowned and turned towards Tork, clearing his throat hesitantly.

   “I- is that... _normal_ for her? I’ve seen these vids before but I never got to know what was behind this… this _strength_.” He said the word quietly, with a certain aversion, clearly unsettled by Jenna’s display of brutal force. Tork shook his head to soothe his concerns, his voice soft when he thought about how he had first met Jenna; frightened, tired, and, as alien as she had been at first, just another face among those who had gotten just a bit too close to the Tallest themselves, and paid a dear price for it. He would've never been able to imagine what was hidden beneath that broken skin of hers.

    “No, not at all, I assure you.” He let his gaze wander over every one of them and realized that they were all frightened by the human, as if she was some sort of alien killing machine with no conscience at all. The fact that she had threatened Xakahr in order to defend Set could have only nourished their suspicions further. He had to resolve this quickly, or they would never follow him and his plans. Besides, he felt like he was doing Jenna wrong by presenting her only as the ultimate weapon.

   “Please, let me tell you something about Jenna: She came to us a fugitive, tortured and broken by the Irkens, but not destroyed by them. When I first met her, she had an Irken ophthalmic patch covering her right eye because it had been pierced right… there.” He pointed at the screen just as the Butcher stabbed the human’s skull with a spider leg and her mouth opened in a soundless scream as she clawed at the giant Irken brute. The scientist who had voiced his concern clasped a hand over his mouth in revulsion. Tork nodded.

    “She has seen more horrors of the Irkens than most of the rebels on this planet. And yet she was strong enough to survive it all, and keep both her sanity and her will to fight. Once she has fully recovered I will have the actual council meet her, so you can all receive an impression of her yourself. Her power comes from the Irken Paks, or rather, the stuff inside: Pakrit. With this she develops this incredible strength and speed, and I plan to make use of that in my attack on Irk.” He concluded and spread his arms, waiting for their reaction.

    The Captain grinned and rubbed his hands. “Now that’s how you fight…” he mumbled, his eyes gleaming with a new fire. It seemed as if he couldn’t wait to see her in action.

   Someone at the end of the table cleared his throat and Tork looked over to the Vortian Commander demanding his attention. He was the other extreme, haggard, tanned by sun and wind and almost as old as The Captain. His yellow eyes were hard and cruel as he met Tork’s gaze with an unmoved expression.

   _Crap_ , he thought, and braced himself for what was to follow that thin cough. “Yes, Commander Vaka?”

   Vaka meant trouble. While he hadn’t been one of Xakahr’s loyal supporters he had never been a friend of Tork either. Truth be told, he _hated_ Tork and would probably do everything to see him rid of his current position as first Commander. Now maybe more than ever before.

   Vaka folded his boney hands on the table and pointed a single skeletal finger at the screens, accusingly. His voice was hushed when he spoke, but just as cold, and dripping with contempt and unspoken hatred.

    “Commander Tork, I have reliable sources about the effects of the Pakrit on this... alien. First, I was told she tried to attack you while under the Pakrit’s influence shortly after she openly threatened to lay hands on Admiral Xakahr when he meant to rightfully punish an Irken invader for his crimes. Second, I came to know that she can no longer use the Pakrit to summon this unholy power, else she would die. That makes her a rather… _useless_ , if not even dangerous, asset, wouldn’t you agree?”

   This caused even more doubtful muttering than before and Tork could only stare at the haggard Commander in utter dismay. How could he possibly know about all that?! He cursed violently in his mind and felt the muscles of his jaws clench, trying not to scream. Vaka might have just turned every single Commander and scientist against him with that revelation!

   Yet instead of losing his cool, he used the time it took for the uproar to subside again, to calm down, sort his thoughts and keep the unyielding glare locked on his opponent. Once it had gotten quiet again, and everyone was watching the silent duel between them, Tork straightened himself and gave Vaka a commendatory nod.

    “As always you didn’t fail to snoop out every little detail, Commander Vaka.” He admitted, what caused a few chuckles here and there. Everyone knew that Vaka was an incurable faultfinder, and an unpleasant one as well. Good.

“But apparently you don’t know about our most recent intel that we gained from the assault on the _Massive_. Thank goodness, otherwise I would have to fire my entire squad for not being able to shut up for one second." He added and watched the look on Vaka's face turn sour. Now Tork had to put everything on his trump card and he sent a mental thank you to Set for losing his arm and making this all possible.  
  
   "Yes, Jenna tried to attack me, though not while being under the _immediate_  influence of the Pakrit, but from a spillover effect, caused by toxic metabolites affecting her body. These metabolites are the very same reason why she can’t take the Pakrit anymore, true. But that only counts for administering the substance _orally_ , as my team of scientists has recently discovered. However, there are other ways to give her the Pakrit and we’re expecting even better results from that method than what you see here. But thank you for the reminder.” He added with a sardonic smile and saw pleased how Vaka’s frown deepened while the Commanders and scientists looked at each other in surprise and actual hope.

    “Now, if there’s nothing else, I’d like you to make your choice.”

In the end, five Commanders, including The Captain, and four scientists were still sitting at the table, pledging their allegiance to the Resistance’s cause anew and confirming him in his office of first Commander. Tork gave each of them a last long look and found that his mood had greatly improved.

    “Alright, Gentlemen, let’s get to work.”  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oooooooh, I think it's go-time people!! Shit's about to go down! 
> 
> So Nemon and Reliat found another way to pump Jenna full of Pakrit - but will it work? Will it be enough to defeat the evil Tallest? And why is it so hard to find some decent wine around here?? *shakes fist*
> 
> This was actually the first chapter I completely wrote in English without first writing it down in German... and I'm loving it! Shit's so much faster to write x'D


	74. Sovereign and Servant - Pt.3

###  **\- 27 Sovereign and Servant -**

**Part 3** __  
  
A few hours later – MedBay wing 23-2

Nemon unfastened the neck brace’s clamps and gently pulled the thick collar off of Jenna’s neck. She didn’t flinch but he could clearly see a sting of pain flashing over her face. The skin over her throat was still covered in bruises where the Vortian tech had tried to crush her windpipe, although their color had faded into a greenish yellow already. Set, who was standing behind him, gave a low hiss at the sight.

   The Ilenian took a handheld scanner from a tray next to him and let its blue light slowly travel over Jenna’s neck while he thoroughly checked the images on his datapad, nodding his head here and there. After a few minutes he leaned back and put the scanner down again, giving Jenna a big, reassuring smile.

    “All right, the swelling is as good as gone; you have my official permission to use your vocal cords again. Slowly. Very slowly, and _carefully_. You can count yourself lucky that it has been healing so quickly despite your… lack of consideration concerning your time of _rest_.” He uttered his disapproval on what they had done two cycles ago. He was getting quite good at paraphrasing that.

   Jenna nodded sheepishly but couldn’t keep a grin from curling her lips when she saw the same expression on Set’s face, and was glad that Nemon didn’t have any eyes in the back of his head in addition to the four brown striped eyes currently piercing her with cross-shaped pupils and fatherly sternness.

    “I guess I was pretty lucky overall.” She replied, and was a bit startled at the sound of her own voice. While it didn’t sound downright raspy like sandpaper it was still raw and croaky and she made a face. She was sounding a lot like her Nan, who had been a chainsmoker her entire life. But regarding this department Jenna was pretty safe, considering her meager stash of cigarettes.

    She heard Set chirping quietly at the sound of her talking again and it made her smile to see him so happy. They had both enjoyed the silent conversations over the datapad but it felt good to be able to respond in time again. Especially since Nemon had told them that Tork wanted to pay them a visit in a few moments, and Jenna had the feeling that this wouldn’t be just another one of his sick bed visits. For a second she was reminded of what the Zar'tak had said to her before he disappeared the first time, that they – presumably everybody else in the room except for Jenna – weren’t ready yet, and that this mysterious sovereign wanted to wait and see what the Ilenians – presumably Nemon and Reliat, but she couldn’t say for sure – would find out, before making their move. Well, Reliat for one had been gone since he had visited Jenna together with Car and everyone else, and by the way the Vortian femme was frowning all the time she could tell that he hadn’t really been all that unoccupied either as of late.

    But _she_ felt ready. Despite the ominous sacrifices the Zar'tak had warned her about, she wanted to go out there and do something, help the evacuation, get back into the lab. And, for crying out loud, she wanted to fly her jet again! More than anything she yearned to try out _Lightwing_ ’s speed on the planet, wanted to feel the machine’s struggle against the gravity, and overcome it, to race across the sky. Lying around on a stretcher all day, not able to leave the room and above all needing _time_ to heal had really eaten up her patience, and more than once she had pondered about how much faster she would’ve been back on her feet with just a little bit of Pakrit to aid her body.

 Of course she never addressed that thought to Nemon or Set… well, not _anymore_. The next morning after the sex, the pain in her throat had been unbearable. Cranky as she was that day, she had ranted to Set about how much easier her healing process would have been with some Pakrit, and the tall Irken had just snapped. He was angry that she would deliberately risk her life just to skip a few cycles of healing and even told Nemon about it, which had ended in a long examination and counseling session. Nemon had taken blood samples of her to analyze it more thoroughly for Pakrit metabolites or anything else that might indicate why she was “craving” the stuff all of a sudden, and he had asked her many questions, like the sort of questions one might have asked an alcoholic or drug addict.

At the end of that cycle Jenna had been absolutely mad at everyone, most of all Set, and they hadn’t found anything unusual in her blood either.

    Tork came around a few minutes later. To everyone’s surprise he was accompanied by Reliat, who didn’t seem to carry any datapads around with him for once, but one good look at his face made clear that he hadn’t put them down until now. Deep lines of nights spent without any sleep were carved into the skin around his four eyes and Jenna was shocked to see that the heavy-built Ilenian had actually lost a good amount of his weight over the last few cycles. Yet despite all that he seemed astonishingly awake and excited, buzzing with a nervous energy. Jenna shifted around on her stretcher and tucked one foot under her leg.

    “Alright,” Tork began straight away after greeting them, “since Nemon apparently declared you fit for duty – or talking – I don’t want to waste any more time. The new council has set up means to evacuate the planet and begun to distribute the civilians onto the _Rebellion_ and _Vengeance_ , so I won’t have to worry about any of that for the moment. My job now is to figure out a way to attack the Irkens and strike where they are most vulnerable at the time being.” He introduced and gave Set a long, meaningful look. The invader understood immediately. He frowned.

    “You mean to attack Irk directly, Commander?”

Tork nodded; Nemon inhaled sharply and Jenna’s eyes went wide. Somehow, the idea of the Home Planet of the Irkens filled her with an unspeakable dread, but before she could collect her thoughts to utter her concern Set got there first. “It may be the Empire’s most unguarded territory as of now, but it’s still suicide. Irk’s defenses would tear the Resistance’s fleet apart before we could even land troops on the surface.” He interposed sharply and his antennae cut through the air when the determined look Tork gave him didn’t falter at his warning.

     “I’m thinking of a small team, with the objective to take out the very thing that’s keeping the Irken system together. The Hive.” The Commander explained calmly and his red eyes slowly traveled over to Jenna, where they lingered thoughtfully.

    For a moment it was dead silent inside the small room, and even their breathing seemed to have stopped altogether. Then Nemon exhaled his held breath shakily and shook his head.

    “You can’t mean to do this.” He muttered in a hushed tone, as if he couldn’t believe what Tork was hinting at with that look. Jenna returned the gaze surprisingly calm herself, although she had no idea how she was supposed to help in this at all, or how she could even be of any assistance. Without the Pakrit she was… nothing, really. She was a bad shooter and had only just begun to fly her jet.

     “Tork, I’m not a fighter… I’m not a _soldier_.” She said quietly, and not only because her vocal cords were still raw.

The Commander shook his head. “Yes you are, kid. You proved it when you destroyed Lenka’s station.” He retorted. But Jenna knew it better. She slipped down from the stretcher to move around, gesturing nervously as she spoke. If she had felt ready before, she now only felt anxious.

    “That’s exactly why I'm _not_! I don’t know how to fight, I never learned. I don’t know tactics, or warfare, only how to defend myself and even that went horribly wrong the last time! I am more a threat to myself than any help to you! I- I can’t have _lives_ depending on me! I can’t do this without…” She stopped and shot Set a quick glance. The invader was still frowning and it was growing deeper still. Disappointed and helpless she turned around again, looking at Nemon for help. “Tell him, Nemon! You of all people know how impulsive I am! I’m not…” She struggled for more words and just raised her hands when she couldn’t find any. She wished Car was here to back her up, or Feorn…

It was Reliat who helped her out, but not exactly the way she might have wanted him to.

    “But you didn’t use the Pakrit during your first two fights in the arena. You defeated those SIR units and Vorns on your own. You jumped through a hull breach to follow the Prerk that kidnapped Set. And you were skilled enough to fly after his crashing ship and break its fall with your own jet enough to diminish the force of the impact without crashing yourself. That seems like some fighter qualities to me.” He pointed out and Jenna turned to him with her brows furrowed in anger. _Not helping, Reliat,_ she thought, while she could practically _feel_ Set getting more concerned by the minute even though he was still able to reign himself in.

    “That… that was only _luck_. Pure, dumb luck and on all of these occasions I either broke some bones in my body or nearly got torn to pieces! It was the Pakrit that made me a fricking war-machine, not my own _skills_.” She complained and now actually clenched her hands into fists, her heart racing.

    Tork had been listening quietly to her venting, but now he gave Reliat a curt nod.

    “I think we should tell her now.”

On his command Reliat dimmed the light in the room and pulled a small device from one of his pockets, which looked like a USB-stick with a small projector lens integrated into one end. When he activated it she realized that it was just that. The gadget projected a screen into the room, filled with medical records, vids and charts and spreadsheets that seemed curiously disorganized. Reliat cleared his throat and moved his hand in a swiping motion over the screen to bring some order in the chaos. Then he started with one of the medical records.

    “After Jenna’s episode on the _Rebellion_ , where she tried to attack Commander Tork and Set, we analyzed her blood and cerebrospinal fluid and found metabolite remnants of the Pakrit. Mass spectrometric analysis and biomechanical reconciliations showed that these metabolites had an affinity to deposit around the neural cells in her cerebrum and cerebellum, where they served different functions. Some of them were blocking neurotransmitters while others seemed to react to certain hormones, like the human stress hormone, and amplified the signals to certain brain areas, causing Jenna to fall into her fit of blind rage while shutting off other brain areas.

In addition to this insight we found out that the Pakrit metabolites were giving off strange waves of electromagnetic pulses. We haven’t been able to figure out what they represent or why the metabolites are even emitting them, but the fact that they are able to do this confirms Jenna’s suspicion that the Pak’s might be something like a synthetic life form. And considering what Set has learned from the Tallest, we can indeed assume as much. We also came to the conclusion that any more metabolites, produced by digesting the Pakrit, will have a lethal effect on Jenna's body."

   Reliat switched to another file, a medical archive record of Nemon himself, after Jenna's trip to the space station, when the medical crew had tried to treat her wounds - the broken nose and ribs. Nemon's voice echoed from the ghostly screen inside the room, explaining how Jenna was not responding to any form of pain killer they tried to administer her.

    Here the younger Ilenian stopped again and turned around to his audience, while waving the stick around like a pointer. Oddly enough the screen stayed in one place.

    "Now this is where things get interesting: While I was on the _Massive_ , observing Set's operation, I made multiple analysis and scans during the procedure. And I discovered something odd; The pain killers that the system administered him were not Pakrit based. They were standard commercial brands that we use on a daily basis in our care routines. And they worked on him. His stress levels showed that the pain was still grave, but not as bad as it might have been without the pain killers."

   Set crossed his arms in front of his chest, brows still furrowed into a sharp set of creases, slowly palming his metal arm with his good hand.

  Nemon had listened with great interest, nodding in approval, but Jenna couldn't wait any longer.

   "What did you find out?" she blurted out impatiently. There was something he was still holding back, and the longer he took with his presentation the more she felt that it was of utmost importance to her.

Reliat was startled by her sudden interruption, but only for a moment, before he nodded and trawled through the files until he found some scanner results and pulled them onto the screen with a hand gesture.

    "The secret lies in the Paks. They are the source of the Pakrit, and as we found out during Set's recovering they seem to even produce new Pakrit over time. But the Irkens need the Pakrit, constantly, or they die. But how do they use it if it's in their Paks and they don't actually feed on it? The answer is in these scans. During Set's operation I scanned his body with both a thermal imager and a handheld mass spectrometer, while analyzing samples of his blood. I discovered that his blood contained an almost untraceable amount of Pakrit, which was highly increased under the stress of the operation. Intrigued by this I looked for Pakrit metabolites in his system and found none.

What this means is: the metabolites are only produced by drinking the Pakrit and digesting it, while an intravenous administration bypasses the human digestive system, leaving it intact and probably even more potent than the metabolites!"

When his excited conclusion received only silence, Reliat looked around, confused. But then he looked at Jenna and smiled. "Don't you understand? You can use the Pakrit again, we'll only have to inject you with it!"

    She was stunned. More than that, she was actually floored. The feeling of dread had left her completely, replaced by a sudden emptiness and the sensation of falling, like the first time she went flying with Feorn around that gas giant. She would be able to use the Pakrit again. She would be able to help. She could finally fight again without risking her life any more than by putting it on the line like everyone else. And most likely she would be of a much greater help than…

    "No."

Set's voice was ice when she turned towards him, his eyes unyielding and his whole posture just screamed the word he had said so plainly only now. His jaw was clenched, his metal fingers were digging into his arm and his antennae laid back flatly against his head as if he was already signalizing them that he wouldn't be swayed by mere persuasion.

    Everyone else was staring at him as well now, Jenna realized. Tork was frowning, Reliat confused and Nemon looked weirdly understanding, but not any less sad. She took a step towards the Irken and placed her hands on his arm, looking up to him, trying a reassuring smile.

    "Set, it's completely safe. I trust Reliat, if he says it's not dangerous anymore, I don't see why I can't-"

Before she could finish the sentence he interrupted her roughly by grabbing her shoulders with both hands, almost lifting her off the ground and bared his teeth at her.

    "I said no and that's final! I won't let you risk your life like that again! Ever!"

Then the lights went out.                

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back you guys, happy Valentine's Day!!!  
> Wow, this chapter was a bit science heavy but I hope it's not too nerdy x'D 
> 
> I also saw Deadpool today. Never laughed so hard at a movie before holy shit that was awesome!!


	75. Sovereign and Servant - Pt. 4

###  **\- 27 Sovereign and Servant -**

**Part 4**

  
The sudden darkness lasted only for the split of a second, too short for them to even react, before the lights went back on again and the room was shaken by a deep, vibrating shockwave. Its epicenter was a piece of embodied darkness, a corporeal shadow that thickened within another blink to stand tall and proud before them. The Zar'tak raised his triangular shaped head, slowly and gracefully, his eyes glowing in a new intensity. He seemed stronger than before, poised and aerial somehow.

   The first one to regain his wits was Set. With an outraged snarl he lunged forward, spider legs darting from his Pak, aiming at the dark alien. But the Zar'tak only glimpsed at him calmly and slightly narrowed his five glowing eyes.

   Set froze in mid-air. Well, technically, he didn’t freeze but was rather caught in a green light that engulfed his entire body and held him up in the air, unable to move or speak. Only his eyes seemed untouched by the eerie power and now they turned into dark crimson slits of seething rage.

   Jenna gasped in shock and rushed to his side, not sure why she thought she could free him from the Zar'tak's force field. Tork inhaled sharply and raised his Chronometer to call the guards. Another glance from the Zar'tak sent it flying, into a corner of the room. Reliat was still paralyzed from surprise and start but Nemon recovered from his paralysis the second the Chronometer hit the far wall with a loud clank and he slammed his hand against the emergency button next to Jenna's stretcher. His face already relaxed in relief - and screwed up again when the sirens stayed silent. Jenna looked over to the button and saw the green light swirling around it. Another force field. They all suddenly realized that they were helpless in the face of his might and surrendered on an unspoken agreement, dropping their defensive stands.

    The Zar'tak took a good look around, still holding Set frozen in the air without any visible strain, and spoke to them when he had decided that he had their full attention. The telepathic contact was a lot quicker and clearer, as if he had only now fully recovered from the EMP.

    _"Apologies, I should have had the decency to announce my coming by sending you a message, or knock, but the circumstances are far too dire to allow for much courtesy, as time is of the essence."_ , he said, and Jenna thought that he sounded… ironic. Until now she had never sensed any hint of emotion in his telepathy but this was something different, the voice inside her head had a character and a vivid intonation that stood in a stark contrast to the Zar'tak’s unreadable expression.

    She shook the fascination off with a jerk of her head, suddenly remembering that he was still holding Set up in the air like a puppet on strings. While she was still mad at him for snapping at her over the Pakrit earlier she was also growing more and more worried for him, afraid the paralysis might harm the Irken somehow.

    “Put him down!” Jenna demanded and actually tried to pull on Set’s arm to get him down on the ground by sheer force. The telepath cocked his head to the side to scrutinize the invader who glared at him in a soundless threat.

    _“That would be most unwise I fear.”_ He simply stated, whereat the crimson eyes only narrowed further, piercing him, but in spite of his voiced concerns the Zar'tak seemed completely unfazed by the glowering glare. _He’s not going to lift the paralysis_ _for as long as he’s around_ , Jenna realized and now anger flared inside her guts like a wildfire. He had no right to just show up whenever he pleased just to mutter some dark forebodings into their minds and vanish in a whiff of smoke again!

    She ground her teeth, trying to keep herself from just snapping about his insolence.

    “Put. Him. Down.” The human growled under her breath and took a step towards the Zar'tak. “If you don’t let him go _right now_ I won’t listen to any more of your bullshit, and then you can go and tell your oh-so mysterious _sovereign_ that I’m not gonna play along with his stupid little game! Set has every goddamn right to want to kill you, but if you cooperate for once and spill some fucking _beans_ , I won’t let him rip you apart with his Pak legs. I promise.” She added with honesty.

    The Zar'tak was clearly taken aback by her mentioning his master. _“You weren’t supposed to…”_ he started shocked but Jenna just laughed and raised her hands.

    “Oh, I’m sorry - I guess nobody told you that I’m a blabbermouth and have zero control over what I say or do, it’s not like I’ve ever gotten into trouble because of that, or is it?!” she spat angrily. All this secrecy was grinding her gears so hard she felt like screaming at everyone. First Tork and Set with their secret-fucking mission to assassinate Xakahr, Set hiring the Zar'tak as a body guard without even telling her, Reliat with his stupid datapads, the Zar'tak and his goddamn sovereign…

    _“You’re losing control.”_

His warning voice jolted her from the furious thoughts she had been spiraling into. For a second she thought seeing another crimson flash before her eyes, looked around and saw the terrified expression on Tork’s and Nemon’s face. Then she noticed that the Commander’s hand had darted to his hip, to his _gun,_ and she quickly raised her hands defensively.

    “I’m not losing anything! I don’t feel dizzy or sick like I did on the _Rebellion_ before I-…, I’m… I’m okay, really!” Her heart was still pounding but apart from that she really didn’t feel anything unusual. Yet when she turned back around to the Zar'tak, all his five eyes were fixed on her.

    _“You are no longer in full control of your body… I can sense it in your blood.”_

Jenna groaned. “Oh my god, just stop it with your vague, pseudo-psychic bullshit already! Just put Set down, that’s all I’m asking!” she threw back, raising her voice again. Why did he have to be so stubborn?!

    "Do what she says for crying out loud!" Tork's voice sounded strained, breathy with unease and she heard the sound of his gun sliding halfway out its holster. Jenna clenched her hands into fists. Why didn't they believe her? She had just told them that she was okay, not a threat to any of them! A thought snuck up on her and she furrowed her brows. What if the Zar'tak was trying to rile them up against her? What if he wasn't out to help her, but rather get her locked up, or sedated so he could easily snatch her away because he was afraid of what she could do… in that case she would have to get the drop on him. Yes, yes… but…

   She looked over her shoulder, her eyes traveling attentively over to Tork and Nemon. Jenna had been right, the gun was almost out of the holster at his hip.

What if they were _all_ in on this?

It made sense somehow; Reliat with this very, _very_ convincing presentation about how she would be able to use the Pakrit again by injecting it, Nemon not saying anything against it and Tork planning to have her in another stealth team to go to Irk…

   Her heartbeat picked up its pace once more, but now it was fear that had it beating faster in her chest. She had to get away; if they were planning something… plotting, trying to experiment on her, she had to escape!

Jenna took a step back from them, her eyes darting towards the door. Nemon had his hands raised in an attempt to grab her shoulders and Tork was staring at her warily, the muscles in his back-bent legs tensing under the fabric of his overall. "No…" she muttered feebly and took another step back. Her thoughts were racing now, tumbling over each other and consuming every sound consideration she had left until her mind was in turmoil, like a beehive someone had punched.

Away, she had to get away, _now_!

   The Zar'tak gave a low hiss, and that was all the suasion Jenna needed to wheel around and make a break for the door. She heard them shouting behind her but she was already outside and took a right, sprinting down the hallway. A jet - she had to find a jet and leave, get into space, as far away from the planet as she could!

   Something crashed into her back and sent her flying forward. With a sick feeling in her stomach Jenna saw the ground already racing towards her when something wrapped around her middle and jerked her around in a tight embrace. A split second later she was on the floor, her fall cushioned by the arms locked around her and she heard someone grunt from the impact, above her head. Flailing and kicking she tried to worm out of Set's arms but the Irken only pulled her closer, making it hard for her to breathe.

    "Set! Let me go! I have to get away, please!" she cried out and tried to push his arms open, without any success. She was getting more and more frantic by the second but he just kept lying on his side, pressing her to his chest. "Fucking- _let go_!"

Jenna was screaming now, her voice already cracking from the strain it put on her vocal cords. Flashes of crimson were trying to blind her, lighting up her vision like strobe lights. Set waited without a sound until her energy had burned itself out from kicking around and she hang limply in his arms, sobbing. "I hate you." She croaked and feebly raised her hands to punch him but couldn't reach his face.

    "No you don't."

The invader waited for another good minute before he finally got back on his feet, carrying her in his arms. Tork and the others had followed them out into the hallway. They were shocked, completely taken aback by this unexpected turn of events, and indecisive of what to do now. The Zar'tak seemed to be the only one not impressed by any of this.

    He had released Set the second Jenna had darted out the room, but instead of attacking him, the Irken had followed her immediately, too worried about her to get his revenge first. Now they were eying each other warily.

    "I'm taking her back to our quarter. She needs to calm down, and I don't want to hear another word about injecting her with Pakrit! And you," he lowered his voice into a hiss as he addressed the Zar'tak directly, "if I catch you sneaking around her again, filling her head with lies, I will break all of your arms before ripping them from your ugly torso and stuffing them down your throat."

With this he turned on his heel and stormed off down the hallway, leaving his Commander and Nemon with nothing more than a cold glare.  
  


    When the door to their shared quarter in the MedBay's living complex closed behind him, Jenna had recovered enough from her exertion to start squirming in his arms again. Set just gripped her tighter, walking over to the bed and putting her down on the disheveled covers. Before she could  roll away from him he caught her wrists in his hands and bent over her, pinning her body down with his own and kissing her until her breath came in shallow hitches from lack of oxygen. He went on to nestle his face against her neck, gently biting the bruised skin, and he felt her jerking beneath him.

    "Set, stop it! I need to get away, they-" Her desperate pleading was interrupted by a short, pained sound when he grabbed her roughly around the waist to slide in between her legs and grind his hips into hers.

    "You need to calm down." He muttered, ignoring her attempts to push him off, and continued to place kisses on her skin, using a spider leg to open the fastener at the front of her overall all the way so he could slide his hands in under the fabric and peel it off of her. Jenna yelped at the cool hands on her skin and kicked him. His pained grunt and the fact that he immediately stopped touching her sent a sting of remorse through Jenna's mind. She hadn't meant to hurt him!

When Set looked up to her she saw the iron determination in his eyes and gulped. "Seems you need a lot calming down." The Irken growled darkly and pulled the open overall down with one hand, with enough force to make her shoulders hurt when the stiff material slipped over them. He chuted down, grating his teeth over her belly, making her flinch and shudder. He reached her warm mound and stopped long enough to shoot her a glimpse and watch her eyes widen, before he dipped his head down and let his thin tongue slip between her folds and against her clit. Jenna jerked again, but now it was from pleasure, and she moaned in surprise.

   "Set, what are you… stop it…" she gasped in a weak attempt to push him away, but after another stroke of his tongue her hands on his head were trembling and reflexively felt for his antennae to caress them. He sighed in turn, pressing his lips against her to catch the little hot nub between them and tickle it with the tip of his tongue. Jenna whimpered shakily, desperately digging her fingers into his scalp to hold onto him. "I need to… I-" she was still not completely out of it, but getting there. Set wrapped his metal hand around the inside of her thigh, using his thumb to spread her folds apart, while he licked the fingers of his right hand and gently pushed them inside her. Her high moan made his antennae quiver under her hands as he watched her throw her head back against the mattress.

    "I know what you need…" he hummed and lowered his head again to lick and suck her clit, wrap his tongue around it and deal it gentle pulls, pumping his fingers into her hot, slick warmth until she was nothing but sighs and moans and lustful cries. Before she could come undone he pulled back, only to free his aching, throbbing erection from his own overall and slide back between her legs to thrust his length into her almost violently. Jenna wrapped her legs around his waist to pull him closer and held on to the open hem of his overall, crying out his name, her voice hoarse. Set moaned deeply, reached around her back with one hand to lift her completely off the bed and rock his pelvis hard against hers, steadying himself at the wall with his other hand. Every relentless thrust made her breath catch in her throat, but she didn't care, couldn't care. Her mind was blank, focused only on the waves of pleasure running through her body until even those were blocked out by her orgasm that took every sentient though away to be replaced by a warm and absolutely _satisfied_ sensation. Set came with a shaky grunt, spilling his load hot inside her before he sank down on his side, still holding her against his body. Her inside was pulsing around him from her climax, throbbing with every few deep breaths she took. He quietly groaned out his own satisfaction, retracting his member inside his body cavity to pull her up to his chest.

    Jenna felt like crying, and was not sure whether she should be embarrassed or relieved when the tears started streaming down her face and she swallowed a sob. Set noticed her distress and looked down on her, a pitying smile on his face.

   "Feel better?" he asked her quietly and she nodded. She _did_ feel better, clearer and part of her was confused why she had felt so angry and afraid before. The thought that Tork or Nemon could ever do anything to harm her seemed so absurd to her that she immediately shook her head, a cold certainty getting hold of her.

    "The Zar'tak was right… I _was_ losing it, wasn't I? You knew…" she uttered in disbelief and was caught in a mismatched pair of arms that wrapped around her and rolled her over onto Set's chest. His crimson eyes were slightly narrowed when he returned her gaze.

    "It was _his_ fault. If he hadn't provoked you into getting so angry you would've been fine!" he replied and placed one hand over the back of her head, gently stroking her hair. "I'm sorry I tackled you like that. Did I hurt you?"

Jenna chuckled and shook her head, wiping away her tears. "No, I'm fine." She looked down on his chest, contrite, and drew little circles on his skin. "Sorry I kicked you… I was just… out." Set stayed silent, waiting for more. She took a shaking breath. "I was… angry. But then I was so afraid, I thought Tork and Nemon and the Zar'tak were planning to experiment on me, or do some other crazy stuff and… my mind told me to get away, to escape. I- I don't know what had gotten into me back there."   

    With a sudden realization she got up and put her overall back on in a haste. "We have to get back, I need answers! If he was really willing to reveal something with Tork and Nemon present I have to know what it is!"

Set grabbed her arm from behind and turned her around. The way he was sitting there on the edge of the bed, his overall open all the way down to his groin, allowing her a good view of his muscular body, was almost enough to make her crawl back into bed again, but she was intent on getting _something_ out of the Zar'tak, if he hadn't already vanished again.

    "No Pakrit. I don't care if Reliat is right or not, I won't let you take it again. And since I'm the only source they could get it from, I will refuse to yield any of it."

Jenna wanted to yank her arm free, but recollected herself and approached him instead. "Set, Tork wants me in his team to destroy the Hive. I can't disobey him, and you can't either; we're sworn to the Resistance now, remember? If he orders you to give Reliat some of your Pakrit, you will have to." She tried to reason, but he only shook his head defiantly.

    "Tork doesn't know what the Hive is or where it's located! _I_ don't even know! And if he really wants to assault Irk and start looking for it, he can easily choose me to lead the squad! I won't allow that you're sent into enemy territory without any real training… you don't even have a working suit right now!"

Now she did yank free and finished closing her overall. "Now you're just being stubborn. And by the way, I have a suit in the making. Tork's brother has a workshop here and he happens to own one of those Irken suit-fabricators. And why are you so anxious about me going to Irk? It's not like I'm going alone, you're coming too! So what's the real reason you don't want me to take the Pakrit?" she asked and turned back around to him. Set just sat there, brooding, avoiding her glare.

    After a moment of silence she huffed and walked over to the door. "Okay, fine. You can stay here and play the sulky child, I'm going back to get some information out of that cocky psychic."

 

In the end Set came with her, cursing in Irken under his breath from time to time until they were back. Surprisingly enough, the Zar'tak was still there, talking to Nemon and Reliat over the assistant's presentation, pointing at some charts while shaking his head at others. Tork was talking into his Chronometer, demanding a status report on the evacuation in progress- When Jenna knocked at the doorframe they all looked up from what they were doing and eyed her with very different expressions.

    Nemon only seemed relieved when he walked over to her and placed a palm on the side of her neck, checking her vitals, before he sighed and embraced her.

    "We were worried about you, Jenna. Are you feeling alright?" he asked carefully and she nodded quickly. Then she shot the Zar'tak a look and felt the telepathic connection building up in her mind like she was putting on a headset.

    "You were right… I was losing control. How did you know? You said you could sense it in my blood." She was relieved that he was still there, it brought some of the trust back that she had before he disappeared the first time. The Zar'tak looked back and forth between Set and her, his mind sending a feeling of astonishment though he didn't care to explain what caused it.

    _"The remnants. I sensed their electromagnetic pulses increasing before you lost your… temper, and I sensed the same pulses two cycles earlier, when you were dreaming. Before that, however, I felt them form initially inside your body multiple cycles ago, when you consumed the invader's Pakrit to destroy the Irken space station. That was when my sovereign ordered me to observe you, for they have seen this reaction to the Paks' blood before. Only they never got to finish their own research on its effects before the Empire's doom destroyed their kind and forced the rest of them to leave this galaxy. My sovereign was one of the few to stay behind and wait, patient, trusting that the seed they had planted would sprout and reveal a way to bring the_ Hive _down."_

    Jenna felt herself trembling at his words, the true meaning of what he had said only now seeping into her brain, and somehow she knew the answer to her question already, but she had to ask nevertheless.

    "What species does your sovereign belong to?" she whispered.

The Zar'tak opened his mouth in a reptilian smile, his eyes shining with fervor.

    _"They call themselves_ The People _... but you will know them under the name of Meekrob."_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ugh I wish I've had the time to make this chapter longer, but the late shifts were really getting to me ;-; 
> 
> So now you have it!! We're dealing with the mysterious Meekrob, a race of beings made of pure energy!! Hope you're all excited!


	76. Leaving Home Base

###  **\- 28 Leaving Home Base -**

  
For a moment the Zar'tak’s words were hanging in the room without anyone reacting to them. Then Tork snorted in disbelief and rubbed his horns with one hand.

    “Damn…” he muttered, “Really, the Meekrob? What business could they possibly have with you? I always thought your kind never had any sort of relationship to the members of the galactic council, to which the Meekrob once belonged to, neither before nor after your discovery. So what was your deal with the Meekrob that not even the council knew of it?”

The Zar'tak cocked his head to the side.

    _“We have always been a servant race of the Meekrob, ever since they recognized the talent for telepathy and kinetic manipulation in our early ancestors. They intervened in our evolution and formed us according to their needs, without turning us into slaves, that is. Thus they were able to use our abilities to communicate between their colonies while we completed other tasks for them that required a certain… dexterity, or scouted on far away planets. Our talent for teleportation allowed us to travel the galaxy, and even leave it, without the council noticing._

_We, in turn, received our power from the Meekrob’s energy; their mere propinquity makes us stronger and greatly improves our abilities. If we have to be separated from our sovereigns for longer, our powers dwindle drastically.”_

His explanation made Jenna look up.

    “So he’s here. Your sovereign, I mean. That’s why you were suddenly able to stop Set so easily!” she said and felt an excitement befall her, but also confusion, caused by what he had told them. What did he mean with this _seed_? Why were the Meekrob a part of all this?

    She recalled that it had been these strange entities, about whom she knew near to nothing, that had sold her planet’s coordinates to the Tallest in order to save themselves. In the end it didn’t do them any good and the armada had destroyed their planet after all. The fact that one of them had just now shown up again, and at the exact point in time where Reliat had figured out how she could use the Pakrit more effectively… Jenna could only guess the scope of all of this.

    “Take me to him.” she demanded determined but he shook his head.

    _“Not yet. They first want to see if you are indeed ready to use the Pakrit, no matter the consequences.”_

Was that one of the sacrifices he had mentioned to her before? Had he actually known that Set would be solid against it?

Jenna heard him hiss behind her and didn’t even need to turn around to know that he was baring his teeth. If she wanted to meet this Meekrob, to get answers to all her countless questions, she would have to oppose her invader who was probably still not willing to part with any of his Pakrit.

On one hand she was touched that he was so worried for her, but on the other hand he was acting foolish. She would, by far, not be facing a greater risk than before with the Pakrit. On the contrary, the Pakrit would make her stronger than ever before. It even irritated her a bit that he suddenly thought he had to act the guardian around her and keep her from any little danger. Sure, the mess with the Vortian had been a close one, but she had survived far worse before.

But when she thought back, to the moment on the _Massive_ , shortly before she had died…

    A shiver ran through her body and now she got a bad conscience towards Set. Of course he was afraid to lose her – it wasn’t any different with her. She had been half mad with fear before Zim helped him, and her fear for him had almost driven her to try and destroy Lenka’s space station without any Pakrit to help her.

    Tork turned around to Set.

    “We need this intel, Set. Think about it, we have the chance to meet one of the last Meekrob! Even before their fall they were considered rare and their technology has never been surpassed by any other race until today, which made their kind the first and most important target of the Empire. And I will be damned if we won’t win the war with their help!” the Commander snarled unyielding. Set’s frown only got deeper.

    “And for that Jenna’s life has to be put on the line?! If this Meekrob has even the slightest interest in ending this war they should just reveal themself to us without Jenna being forced to put herself in danger for a bit of information!” he cut the air with a hard gesture of his metal arm. “And even if they have information about the Pakrit, we still don’t know where or even _what_ our target is!”

    He ejected his armor from the Pak and straightened himself to full height. “Send me to Irk. I know the planet and could keep under the radar long enough to find out what the _Hive_ is and where it’s located.”

    Jenna saw that Tork was actually considering accepting his proposal when the Zar'tak interrupted unasked: _“There is no need to risk your life unnecessarily, my sovereign will tell you all you need to know about the_ Hive. _They know about the Paks and their relationship to the_ Hive. _But she has to take the Pakrit. Too much is at stake should your plan fail.”_

Tork’s mouth fell open at this comment and he stared at the Zar'tak in shock.

    “All this time they knew and they didn’t warn us once…” With deep, angry frown lines on his face he turned to Set again, who was glaring back at him just as furious but the Commander’s expression was iron. “The Pakrit. Now.”

With a wordless hiss Set opened his Pak and yanked a glass vial from its inside. The crimson Pakrit sloshed lazily up the walls when he slammed it onto the tray next to the stretcher and stormed out of the room without another word. Jenna wanted to follow him but Nemon gently grabbed her arm. The shake of his head was clear enough to hold her back even though everything inside her was screaming to go after him, apologize to him and hug him…

    _“He will realize that it is the right thing.”_ The Zar'tak commented in her head and she thought hearing something like sympathy in that incorporeal voice. Nevertheless she was upset that this Meekrob was causing so much hardship by keeping everything a secret.

    Reliat hesitated a second before picking up the vial of Pakrit and turning it in his fingers, fascinated. The glass container was a bit thicker than his thumb and as along as his hand. On top and bottom it was closed up by two dark caps that looked like closed claws. Startled Jenna wondered how many of these vials Set might have left in his Pak and whether it would be bad if they were all gone.

    The Zar'tak gave her an expectant look but Nemon quickly raised a hand.

    “Before we test it on you we will mix it with a sample of your blood to check that it doesn’t accidentally causes your blood to coagulate or damages your DNA. Because that could easily be just as deadly for you as drinking the substance again.” The Ilenian reminded the black alien and also the visibly excited Reliat, who apparently couldn’t wait to administer her the stuff. Then he narrowed his eyes and the hand on her shoulder squeezed gently. “You can still say no, Jenna. It’s your body and your decision. We only know that injecting it won’t cause any more metabolite remnants but apart from that we have no idea what might happen to you. Are you sure that this is what you want?” he asked quietly and urgently, concern in his four big, brown eyes.

For a second Jenna thought about it. _You will have to make sacrifices…_

    She nodded resolute. The damage was done anyway; at the end of the day Set would either savage her or give her the cold-shoulder, but somehow she had the feeling that the latter would await her and trying to imagine a conversation in her head where they would agree with each other peacefully didn’t help. Besides: if her decision meant that they would get a chance to stop the Irken Empire and save the galaxy, maybe she would be able to save Earth as well.

   
  


They left the infirmary and walked down the hallway towards Nemon’s laboratories. Reliat was already animatedly talking to the Chief Medical Officer about possible results and which scanner they should use to observe and record the processes, walking ahead of them, and Tork was getting an update on the evacuation in progress so Jenna and the Zar'tak stayed behind them. She was still pondering about a possible conversation-outcome with Set when she noticed the timid telepathic contact at the edge of her consciousness, like a polite knock against her mind.

    She looked up and returned the uninterpretable gaze out of five eyes, surprised that the telepath apparently knew something like privacy and actually respected it.

Although she was still miffed about him keeping so much a secret from them, she nodded invitingly, convinced he would talk only to her this time.

    _“You are not scared about what might happen to you. That is… astonishing.”_ He admitted puzzled what made her smile. Apparently there were still some things out there that could surprise someone like him. Before Jenna could figure out how to best reply without drawing attention to their private conversation, he continued. _“When I sensed your dreams two cycles ago you were very afraid. And before that your mind was filled with an all-consuming rage.”_

    Jenna frowned, confounded. _Before_?

She raised her hands quizzically. The Zar'tak tilted his head, the look out of his eyes grew more focused, as if she had startled him from a memory. _“In the night when I found the Vortian lurking in front of your door.”_  he helped her and she nodded in surprise. Jenna remembered that dream, even though it caused a cold shiver to run down her spine.

    In her dream the rebel city had been destroyed, crimson flames had consumed what ruins remained of the buildings and she had been left with only a Vortian. A Vortian she had first assumed to be Xakahr, but when she had pierced his back with an iron bar, blinded by rage, he turned around and his face was empty, without any features. Then she had felt a gaze on her back and turned.  

When she remembered how the Zar'tak’s eyes had hovered in the sky, as big as moons, another chill shook her. Somehow she had felt his presence, or he had sent her a mental image, warning her about the Vortian tech.

    _“Back then I sensed the electromagnetic pulses emitting directly from your body for the first time. My sovereign had prepared me for this, but I wasn’t ready for such intensity. Before your… arrival I had never seen him so excited, so energetic. Meekrob are beings of pure energy, the shape of their corporeal bodies only held together by their willpower. They are the oldest race in the universe, or so it is said. My kind has been serving them for millions of years and they made us what we are. Before they found us, they had seen the_ Hive _’s threat once already, in another galaxy. But that was so long ago that the knowledge almost passed into silence.”_

    Now Jenna couldn’t resist any longer: “How were you able to see my dreams?” she asked under her breath. “I thought you couldn’t read minds.”

    The Zar'tak raised his eyes to the vial Reliat was just now holding up before his face. A tremor went through his black body.

    _“This is what I meant when I said that I wasn’t ready for the intensity I faced. I did not read your dreams… you were sending them. The transmission was so powerful that it overwhelmed my mind when I tried to contact you, and I am sure that I could have received it even in the planet’s orbit. I was only  able to send you an image through the crushing waves you were emitting, which caused you to wake up. When you came to the transmission broke off, and shrank back to the normal electromagnetic pulses you give off even now. I figured it must have to do something with the remnants in your body… have you ever had dreams like this before?”_

Jenna nodded, but she was too shocked to answer. She was actively _sending_ her dreams? But what he said made sense: ever since she drank Set’s Pakrit, and digested it into the metabolites, she had been plagued by horrible nightmares. But how were they possibly able to send her thoughts, her dreams, so strongly that the Zar'tak could receive them when no other species had ever been able to communicate with them on a mental level? And why had this process only started after that one vial of Set’s Pakrit, and not earlier, after emptying Ria’s entire Pak?!

    Her questions would have to wait; they entered Nemon’s laboratory and just as they were through the door Reliat already disappeared to prepare everything for the experiment. Nemon took a blood sample of her to test the Pakrit on. The two Ilenians cleared one of the work spaces, made room for the in vitro tests and prepared microscopes, scanners, and an Ilenian DNA-analyzer, which Jenna still found absolutely fascinating. On Earth a complete genome analysis still took multiple hours to perform even with the best equipment, but this barely Walkman-sized analyzer could determine her full genome out of a single blood drop in a few seconds, save the data and compare it with the genotype of every single other cell in her blood, or whatever other sample you would feed it, making it able to detect mutations. Unfortunately Nemon lacked enough data as to say, with certainty, in which way those mutations could affect her body.

    To easy the feeling of tension in her stomach Jenna assisted the two of them in the preparations, while Tork crossed his arms in front of his chest, leaning against an incubator, and the Zar'tak sat down on the floor cross-legged.  He stretched out his lower, shorter pair of arms to both sides, palms turned upward like in meditation. The upper, longer arms were resting on his crossed legs.

    _“I shall now assume contact with my sovereign. They will see witness through my eyes what takes place in here and satisfy themselves that Jenna is ready to do what needs to be done.”_ He announced, as his eyes were filled with a strong green light which soon engulfed his whole body. Very slowly he started to hover until he was a good foot over the ground and didn’t move a muscle. He closed his eyes and the mental contact was cut but in its stead a soft ringing filled the air like the quiet chiming of tiny silver bells. Jenna looked around in surprise but couldn’t find a source for the noise. Then the Zar'tak opened his eyes again, yet instead of glowing green, like his force field, their sheen was of a strikingly bright blue, transcendental and cool. Nemon and Reliat both held their breath in awe and even Tork seemed a bit shaken by the force that had suddenly taken the Zar'tak.

     “I think we should start the experiments now… wouldn’t want our esteemed audience to get bored.” He grumbled dryly and jerked the two Ilenians from their rigor.

    “Agreed. Jenna, this won’t take long, why don’t you go ahead and take a seat on the stretcher?” Reliat asked her and the human gave a nervous nod. She would have preferred to see for herself what the Pakrit would do with her blood, with her cells, but she didn’t want to delay the process by struggling with the complicated microscopes and thermal cycler. Moreover she got the feeling that she maybe didn’t even _want_ to know what the Pakrit would probably do to her cells, so she sat down on the stretcher Nemon had pushed to the side. While the scientists took a small droplet out of the Pakrit vial and mixed it with another drop of her blood in a petri dish, she tried to calm her anxious breathing and relax, what didn’t help all that much; soon enough she had a real knot in her guts.

    Nemon and Reliat took turns bending over the microscope the petri dish was lying under, quietly mumbling to each other, then nodded and took a sample for the genome analyzer. Jenna chuted around on the stretcher, her fingers involuntarily found fine chaps in the skin around her nail beds and started picking the skin, plucking off fine scales. The queasy feeling in her stomach however stayed and did not improve when she felt the eerie gaze of the Zar'tak on her.

    Finally she heard Nemon exhale in relief, a clear sign that everything was alright with the sample, but instead of calming her down as well the good news only fueled her nervousness further until she thought she had to puke. Should she abort the whole thing? After a quick glimpse towards the Zar'tak she decided against it, she couldn’t bail now, not when all the answers were this close at hand!

    Nemon stepped around the stretcher, a tony syringe in his hand. It couldn’t hold more than a few milliliters, maybe less. But considering how strong she had become after that small vial Set had given her before her mission compared to the entire amount of Pakrit in Ria’s Pak, then this small syringe could be enough to transform her into something entirely else. The Ilenian gave her an inquiring look and she was quick to nod.

    “Let’s get this over with…” Jenna muttered tensed and closed her eyes as the syringe emptied its contents into the crook of her arm, a dull sting the only thing she noticed.

The effect was even faster this time, almost momentarily: energy shot through her body like a hammer blow and she was nearly thrown back onto the stretcher. Her brain seemed to explode before it contracted again, sending another jolt of energy through her. With it came the short sensation of being burned alive as the entirety of her nerves split up and doubled, connected by bridges of Pakrit, getting modified, improved, their action potentials changed into a dynamic system rather than reacting on a specific voltage. She heard her blood running through every little artery. Her cells, now with ten times as many mitochondria than before, turned the oxygen she was breathing into pure energy for her raging brain, whose energy consumption has suddenly increased tenfold.

    In the next heartbeat she had evaluated the situation, realizing that no danger was imminent and throttled her metabolism to a minimum to conserve the remaining Pakrit a while longer.

For a moment she kept sitting with her head down, relishing the feeling of power. Her hands had clutched the edge of the stretcher and left deep dents in the metal frame as if it was made of butter. Carefully she loosened her cramped fingers and flexed them, stretched her hands, felt the power in her muscles that had doubled in an instant like her nervous system. When she raised her gaze she noticed that Nemon had recoiled from her and that Tork had drawn his gun again, cold sweat forming on his forehead.

    The Zar'tak hadn’t moved a muscle, only his blue glowing eyes were still calmly resting on her. Jenna smiled entranced. She felt the waves of telepathic energy he was emitting, close to the spectrum of extremely low frequencies. With just a little bit more energy she could have altered her eyes to make them visible.

    “To whom am I speaking now?” she sent mentally but also said it out loud, her voice once again amplified by that unearthly echo. She wasn’t really used to the mental communication yet and speaking out loud what she wanted to send made it easier.

A fierce jerk went through the Zar'tak and he trembled violently, the black body wanted to vanish in panic before something invisible grabbed him and his jaw muscles relaxed again while his body returned to its solid form.

The chiming got louder and the new presence grew at the edge of her consciousness until it towered over everything.

    _“Impressive, human._ ” The voice was a deep, rotound baritone but there was something bright in it as well, as if the bells were joining into the high voices of children. _“We feel honored to meet you, the first being able to use the blood of the Hive that is now spawn of Irk. We fell your rage, the feeling of treason, but know that we first had to witness your resolve. Now that we have seen that you will do what is necessary, and that you are ready to use the Pakrit, we will answer your questions and tell us all that we know about this scourge of the universe that calls itself the Hive.”_

“Holy shit…” Tork croaked aghast, the weapon in his hand trembled wildly and he almost dropped it trying to hastily put it back into its holster. Jenna slipped into a more comfortable position on the stretcher and used the Pakrit’s energy to activate her body’s self-healing abilities and repair her old wounds.

    _“Commander Tork, we have seen your young Resistance growing but we couldn’t assist it enough before the Irkens destroyed our own planet. Now we mean to do anything in our power to correct this mistake. You too must have questions. Please, ask.”_ The Meekrob invited Tork. That seemed to pull the Vortian Commander out of his terror, he nodded and palmed over his forehead.

    “Alright, uhm… well, thank you for your support, I guess… I don’t really know where to begin now that you’re… uhm, here?” He shook his head, and collected his thoughts for a brief moment. “What exactly is the _Hive_? Ex-invader Set only recently learned of its existence and apparently the Tallest alone know about it.”

The Zar'tak nodded slowly, the chiming underlining the movement.

    _“Ah, yes… the freed Irken.”_ Again the gaze out of blue glowing eyes traveled to Jenna. _“Fascinating what human affection can accomplish…”_ Then he turned back to the Commander: _“The Hive is, what we assumed, the last member of a synthetic lifeform, ancient, and its origin unknown though we are certain that it didn’t come from this or any of the near galaxies. Long ago our kind found remains of their kind, or rather what they left behind. Chaos and destruction._

_But we realized too late, far too late that it had already invaded this galaxy, in the shape of the Paks. We suspect that their intervention, the Hive’s first contact with the primitive lifeforms on Irk, lead to the Irkens’ rapid evolutionary advancement. The Hive aided in developing their technology and their mental growth until the Empire rose, declaring war on the rest of the galaxy. Our Oracles, the most powerful conjunction of us and our servants, the Zar'tak, foretold our doom, long before the first actual Tallest was chosen on Irk, and that we would not be able to stop it._

_Desperate we began to research the first versions of the Paks, tried to understand their innermost functions and find their weaknesses to at least aid the other races in their struggle. But we found nothing that helped us to truly understand these synthetics, only that the Pakrit must have been the mechanism responsible for the astonishing jumps in Irken evolution, yet no matter on which lifeforms we tried it, we couldn’t achieve the same effect.”_

    Tork frowned and patted the gun at his hip. “So why didn’t you just destroy them? As I understand it the Irkens were not a threat to the galaxy at that time, so why not wipe them out before they can develop that far?”

    _“Because that wouldn’t have stopped the Hive. It would have only drawn its attention to us and the threat we posed and most likely forced it into hiding and keeping its plans out of our reach. By letting the Hive develop the Irkens undisturbed we could research it. But… in the end we’re not sure if other measures would not have been more successful than predicted.”_

    The Meekrob fell silent for a moment and Jenna felt sorrow seeping out their consciousness. She couldn’t get through to his thoughts the way she had been able to with the Irken soldiers on the _Massive_ and on Lenka’s station but she didn’t dare to really try. Something in this being radiated an almost godlike power that filled her with humbleness and reverence, even in this state of her own might.

    “Why did you sell out my planet to the Irkens when you knew that they would destroy you either way? I was told that you would never betray a young race such as mine that easily.” She asked them and heard the Zar'tak humming in agreement when the otherworldly echo of her voice had subsided.

    _“You’re right, under normal circumstances we would have even tried to hide your planet from the Irkens to ensure the persistence of your kind._

_Thousands and thousands of stellar cycles ago we visited Earth and found a prosperous planet already thriving with an abundance of lifeforms. Back then we were still looking for more test-subjects for our Pakrit experiments. And we found a race that seemed promising enough, nascent to become a dominant species.”_

“Us.” Jenna breathed and her thoughts raced through the memory of her DNA, went back to old civilizations, cave men and hairy creatures roaming the vast savanna plains.

    _“Yes. The humans were young and strong - adaptable. We tested the Pakrit on them and observed that they were reacting very differently than any other lifeform before. Our test group in the northern hemisphere of the planet developed bigger brains, the Pakrit changed their genetic material and their offspring developed even bigger brains.”_

_Neanderthals_ , Jenna thought astonished and remembered at the same moment that this group of early humans had vanished in an almost mysterious way despite their massive brain size that even exceeded that of modern humans.

Nemon interrupted the Meekrob, startled.

    “Hold on, our scans didn’t show any mutations that occurred after administering the Pakrit; so how can it cause mutations in the genome either way?”

The Meekrob gave a low chuckle.

    _“Don’t worry, doctor, Jenna won’t suffer any mutations. You have to bear in mind that our experiments lasted for thousands of years and even more generations of test subjects, and we had completely different methods of using the Pakrit on them. We infused single test subjects with it, purposefully build it into their genetic material. But unfortunately the bodies of the humans were still too primitive to carry the changes, and something went wrong. Suddenly our test group was dying quicker than we could adjust our methods, while our control group in the south was evolving at a normal rate and seemed to adapt better to their changing surroundings._

_We decided to abort the experiment for the time being and to wait for humanity to develop enough so they would be able to bear the mutations and evolutionary jumps. But we were always aware of their potential for the Pakrit’s power, their untapped abilities. When we gave the Tallest your coordinates we did it out of hope. We knew that through the contact with the Irkens, the humans would sooner or later also get into contact with the Pakrit, be it by chance, as it was in your case, or because of the Irkens themselves. For they, too, perform experiments on all kinds of lifeforms, abducting other aliens for their research. We don’t know exactly why they do it, but it seems they are looking for something.”_

Jenna nodded, it all made sense now, especially that the Vortian had been ordered to kidnap her rather than just kill her.

    “And now they’ve found it in me.”   

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hoooo man this was a beast to write! But I felt like I needed to give you guys a longer chapter for once!!!  
> It's pretty late, and my brain is too empty to write any sassy comments under this one... so please feel free to do that for me aight? xD Love you all, thanks so much for all the kudos and the wonderful feedback you guys are giving me ♥♥
> 
> **EDIT:** I'm sorry, but there won't be an update this Sunday (6th March). I've come down with a bad case of writer's block and couldn't find any inspiration this week :( plus I've reached the point where my prewritten script got outpaced by the translated chapters, so now I'll have to both progress the story and translate each chapter... I'm confident that I'll be back with a new update next week on Sunday, 13th. Again, I'm sorry for the delay ;-;


	77. Leaving Home Base - Pt. 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As you may have noticed, reading the chapter title, I changed the chapter order a little bit. "Leaving Home Base" soon became too long a chapter to get to the point of its title and there's still so much going on before they actuallly leave the home base, which was probably also why I had trouble continuing with this chapter in particular.   
> But now everything's back to normal and I feel really relieved that I made this change!!
> 
> Now enjoy this weeks chapter!!

###  **\- 28 Leaving Home Base -**

**Part 2**  
  
  
The Tallest were after her because of the Pakrit...  
  
Jenna thought about Ria who had experimented on the Pakrit before freeing herself from the Codes. She had known exactly what the substance would do to the human, that it would heal her and make her stronger than ever imaginable. But had she known anything about the _Hive_ 's motives? About why she was supposed to experiment on other life forms? She doubted it.

The Meekrob made the Zar'tak nod in approval.

    _"Our servant told us about the Vortian traitor that was ordered to take you to the Tallest. That does indeed reveal much about what its intentions might be. But we can still only make assumptions about what they're really planning, what the_ Hive _is really planning, but all signs point in the direction that they want to exploit your ability to use the Pakrit for their own goals. You mustn't fall into their hands, under any circumstances! It could mean the end for all of us."_

Despite her increased mental capacity it took Jenna a moment to realize what they were getting at. Then she got angry.

    "Does that mean you want to forbid me to go to Irk? Then why the hell was I supposed to take the Pakrit if I'm not even going to use it to destroy the _Hive_?!" she blurted out bewildered, tearing the silence apart. The volume of her voice made everyone else in the room flinch in start.

    "She's right," Tork seconded her after he managed to catch himself. "We need her abilities if we ever want to stop the Tallest or they will eventually enslave the whole galaxy. Jenna is the edge we never had!"

Their protest didn'T seem to surprise the Meekrob but they maintained their silence. Jenna jumped off the stretcher impatient what didn't cost her any effort, a short twitch of her muscles vaulted her forward.

    "I won't stay behind idly and watch my friends die while my potential stays untapped!"

In secrecy she suddenly got aware of how much she had changed over those few weeks she was away from Earth. Even after Set had abducted and tortured her she still had kept a certain amount of humor and lightheartedness but ever since Feorn died she had become more sober as if only his death had finally managed to show her the situation she was in - they all were in. Not even her own death on the _Massive_ and all the mutilations she had suffered from the Butcher had been able to change her so severely.

The Zar'tak shivered when she got so close to him and she heard the Meekrob sigh in her mind.

    _"We can't hold you back, we know that… nor do we wish to hinder the Resistance. But you have to be on your guard. The_ Hive _is ancient and even more cunning, it won't be taken by surprise that easily. If anything it might already be expecting your arrival and plans how to capture you after all. We will leave our servant with the Resistance so that he may help to further improve your abilities and hone them."_ They finally relented and Jenna relaxed again even though the thought of having the Zar'tak hovering about her from now on worried her, especially because she didn't really have to guess to know how Set would react to those news.

    "That brings me to my next question: Where is the _Hive_ located?" Tork interrupted her thoughts and now the Zar'tak stirred for the first time since his master had taken control over his mind; his upper pair of arms lifted from his crossed legs and the plump, three-fingered paws started glowing green. The energy formed something in front of him, an iridescent shape of light which quickly resumed the image of a planet with a big ring. Irk.

    _"We can't say for certain, but if you consider that the_ Hive _has been hidden ever since the first contact with the primitive Irken we can assume that it built its nest somewhere in the underground, beneath the oldest and most central buildings of the Irken civilization, from which its influence spread over the entire planet."_

"So right in the heart of the capital city… great." Tork muttered growling. "Of course that makes it a whole lot more difficult to get to it unnoticed even for a small team. Our fleet will have to fly a diversion to take their eyes off our strike team… Excuse me, I have to meet with the other Commanders and the council to discuss this. Nemon, Reliat, I'm expecting a full report by morning. Jenna, once you're done here, meet me at my office at HQ."

With this the first Commander headed for the door where he stopped once more and turned around. "And run some field tests. Not only the lab stuff, I wanna know everything about her abilities, everything you can find out until the Pakrit wears off." He added and Jenna couldn't help a lopsided sneer.

     "So you want me running round the air _field_ , Commander?" she quipped and he gave an amused grunt.

     "Hell if it helps I'll have you running around the whole damn planet, kid."  
  


After Tork had left the MedBay the Zar'tak got to his feet, the blue glow pulsing gently in his eyes.        

 _"I shall withdraw as well for now. Should you have more questions turn to my servant, he will contact me. Until then."_ Another tremble went through the Zar'tak and he closed his eyes. The glow around his body slowly faded away and when he opened his eyes again their color had turned back into a normal green. His gaze fixed on Jenna and they eyed each other for a moment. Now that the Meekrob wasn't occupying his mind anymore she was able to reach into it and get to know more about the telepath. She found out that he was a lot older than she would have thought, more than a hundred years old, to be honest. Jenna sensed the unease in the other's consciousness and quickly retreated, even taking a step back, and the Zar'tak relaxed visibly. She wondered if it was considered rude to snoop around his mind like that, but soon her attention had to be directed to more pressing things, like the tests Reliat and Nemon wanted to run with her.

    They spent the rest of the afternoon checking Jenna's vitals and brainwave activity. After that was done they went to test her mental abilities: Reliat took a few cards and turned them around so that she couldn't see what was on them. Almost playfully she recited the symbols in the right order.

    "How did you do that?" Reliat wanted to know flabbergasted and Jenna just smirked. But when Nemon shot her a stern glance she explained them her little trick with the mind reading. At first Reliat didn't believe her and tried to come up with a logical explanation, like reflections behind him that she was able to see or something else, until Jenna told him in every little detail where he came from, who his parents were and the exact date he and Car had dated for the first time. After that he didn't comment on anything anymore and simply wrote down what she explained him.

    The tests went on, and when Reliat and Nemon had enough data they went into his office to evaluate the results and construct a presentable report for Tork. The Zar'tak stayed with Jenna in the MedBay and asked her to sit down with him. He resumed his former posture - legs crossed and arms on his knees - and Jenna copied it. She still had enough Pakrit left in her system to last her till the next day and even longer because she wasn't using it up with physical exertion or changes on her cells. And gradually she became used to the feeling of unlimited power. But no matter how hard she mobilized her immune system, she couldn't remove the metabolites inside her brain. Every time she tried to destroy single  infested neurons the clusters spread to the neighbor cells instead. She could sense them, felt the electromagnetic pulses they were still emitting and yet she couldn't get rid of them. It irritated her beyond anything.

    _"Please concentrate."_ The Zar'tak interrupted her. Still occupied with studying the metabolites she kept staring down on her hands

    _"I am concentrating."_ She sent back, but her lips were moving along with the mental message. His teeth clacked together in disapproval and now she was polite enough to look at him, even though her thoughts were again travelling, looking for new information, new sensations.

    _"You still move your lips when you send. That won't do if you have to coordinate your team mentally and let your enemies see what you're saying to them. Let me show you…"_

Jenna sighed internally as the Zar'tak explained to her how to channel her thoughts and focus them on what she wanted to send without simply sending her entire subconsciousness along. His lesson was actually really helpful, and she was able to send properly after his initial explanation, yet she kept messing up intentionally, so he would keep talking and a part of her mind was able to drift off again.

Jenna felt her brain expanding, like it had in the Voot cruiser when she drank Set's Pakrit before the fight on the space station, soon covering the whole MedBay complex, but she kept looking when she didn't find what she wanted. Where was he? Like fingers her thoughts trawled through the building, touching thousand minds before travelling on, further into the city.

She found what she was looking for in the hangar, or rather in a big room within the hangar, and stopped hesitating. Her mental fingers ran together into one hand and concentrated on that one mind she was observing, feeling around the edges appraisingly and somewhat shy. It felt wrong to spy on Set like that, but she needed to know what was going on inside him. Jenna sensed the anger in him, something close to physical violence and when she extended a few telepathic feelers she noticed that he wasn't alone, but with a few other rebels, some of them equally angry but also… excited?

Concerned Jenna reached out further to him and opened a telepathic channel.

    _"Where are you?"_ she wanted to know, now completely ignoring the Zar'tak. Set's reaction to the mental contact was intense and accompanied with a lot of confusion and distrust. He thought that it was the Zar'tak playing a trick on him so she gave her messages an actual voice, what took her a good amount of concentration and Pakrit. _"Set it's me, Jenna. I… I took the Pakrit, that's why I'm able to talk to you like this. Where are you?"_ she repeated, but still no answer, only more anger. Right, he couldn't talk back. She read his thought more and saw the image of a vast room, filled with aliens and training gear. A gym. _"Can I come over?"_

   There was still silence on the other end of the line but she felt his emotions. Set was indecisive but not entirely reluctant. And Tork _did_ tell her to run a field test.

Without another word she retreated into her own body and stood up. The Zar'tak was staring at her wide-eyed, the chiding rebuke on the tip of his tongue forgotten.

    _"I'm going to the gym, Tork wants to know how strong I am."_ She sent without moving a single facial muscle, already poised to leave the MedBay. Quickly the telepath followed her through the closing door.

    _"How did you…"_ he wanted to know perplexed but also amazed and Jenna chuckled.

    _"Well, you're actually a very good teacher. I don't think I would've been able to learn that on my own; the trick with imagining the contact as a tunnel is very useful."_ She replied and watched his eyes narrowing, realizing that she had actually grasped the concept on first try.

 

On their way to the hangar Jenna was met with a lot of curious but also frightened stares from the aliens they walked past. At first she thought it was because of the Zar'tak but she soon noticed that they were looking at her, her eyes in particular, and she remembered the crimson glow the Pakrit had caused in them before. But she ignored them and focused on what she would do once she was in the gym. Tork probably would want to know how fast the dose of Pakrit would burn out under an extensive amount of physical strain and how much her strength had increased compared to her normal physique supported by her old suit.

They entered the hangar and crossed the vast hall to get to the gym. Jenna looked around and saw that the evacuation was still in process; countless rebels were waiting for transporters to carry them and their belongings to the _Rebellion_ and the _Vengeance_ that would take them off-world and towards some of the marginal outposts. Somehow she felt as if it was her fault that they were forced to abandon their planet now, although the Tallest probably would've found out the location either way sooner or later.

The gym was buzzing with energy when they walked through the door; soldiers, fighter pilots and scouts were working out. Some were lifting weights, others were stretching and some were even sparring in a corner of the spacious room. Jenna extended her mind for a short moment until she found Set in exactly that corner, and she walked over to the noise of fighting. Although it was pretty overcrowded she had no trouble moving through the press: those who took a good look at her were quick to take a few steps back. The Zar'tak followed her with a few paces distance, curious but also wary.

The noise got louder, Jenna stepped around a jeering Steelhunter and saw just in time how Set threw another one of their species over his shoulder with a furious roar and enough momentum to send the Steelhunter flying a good few meters before he came crashing down on the ground. But before she could join the upcoming applause a Vortian jumped on Set's back and went right for his antennae. The Irken reacted swiftly; before his attacker could get the upper hand Set lunged forward and rolled over one shoulder, crushing the much smaller Vortian with his weight and stunning him with a short shock from his Pak. Groaning, the Vortian stayed on the floor and just tapped the ground exhausted in a surrendering gesture. With a graceful motion Set came back on his feet and rubbed his head, casting the defeated alien an angry glare.

    "Going right for the antennae, really?" he growled but then a mean grin curled his thin lips. "You're learning."

Set's gaze fell on Jenna and he paused immediately. She eyed him just as quietly.

He had exchanged the normal overall for one with no sleeves to prevent his metal arm from overheating under the fabric. His skin was sweaty from hours of fighting and his broad chest was heaving heavily. Her heart did a nervous flutter when his eyes turned into small slits and he clenched his hands into fists. His glare traveled over her body in uncontained anger, frown deepening as he examined her. Suddenly the other aliens collectively seemed to remember something important because they scattered in the blink of an eye until they had the sparring ring mostly for themselves. Set exhaled hard, grabbing a towel from the floor to wipe over his face and turn away from her.

The silence spread into awkwardness and no matter how much her brain had improved Jenna couldn't come up with anything to say. Should she apologize? Or explain what happened? Tell him about the Meekrob and the _Hive_ perhaps? And why should she apologize?! He was the one acting like a petulant brat!

Instead she reached out and poked at the edge of his mind, carefully. Despite her slow approach he flinched in start and bared his teeth.

    "Stop that! It's freaking me out…" he hissed and she quickly retreated. Set sighed, flung the towel away and wheeled around. Behind her Jenna could hear the Zar'tak taking an alarmed breath as the invader stomped over to her and took her face in his hands, to turn her head into every direction and study her. She submitted to the rough inspection despite her body's instinctive urge to back away.

He was bent over her, close enough to feel his breath on her skin and make her spine crawl with shivers. The Pakrit made her experience everything with a new intensity and her mind briefly traveled to the thought how it would feel to have sex with him while under its effect.

Jenna couldn't keep a smile and raised her hands to place them over his. But Set parted from her and pulled his hands away. His eyes were accusing.

    "This is not you… I don't know what that is but it's not you." He muttered, not noticing the hurt expression on her face. "Whatever this… Meekrob told you, it's not worth it. They won't be able to defeat the Tallest. And you can't defeat them either… I know I couldn't."

A hot wave of anger washed over her and Jenna grabbed his meal arm to pull him down to her.

    "You know what I did back on that station. I _am_ able to defeat them, all of them!" she hissed through gritted teeth and saw a provoking spark in those crimson eyes.

    "Oh yeah? Prove it." Set purred challenging, ejecting his armor.   

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next week: the big hoedown throwdown between Set and Jenna!! Woooo!! *hands out popsickles and hotdogs*
> 
> I need to sit my lazy ass down and draw Set and Jenna wrestling up a storm x'D
> 
> Anyone got any ideas for their WWE nicknames?? (Just to be clear, Jenna gets a Jenna Cena theme song *dies laughing* )
> 
> Sorry for the delay/confusion, I had a rough one figuring out where to go with this chapter x'P All better now!!


	78. Leaving Home Base - Pt. 3

**\- 28 Leaving Home Base -**

**Part 3**

  
 "Oh yeah? Prove it."

Suddenly her sanity got the better of her again and she flinched back.

    "I won't fight you, Set! That's ridiculous!" Jenna snarled indignant and was already about to walk away when she heard his sinister chuckle.

    "You're just scared you're going to lose." He smirked spiteful. Now she stopped dead in her tracks. All around the other aliens were glancing over to them, some of them already exchanging whispered bets. Jenna had never really cared about what others would think about her for avoiding a fight but this was different than the occasional bitchfight in a bar. Now she had a reputation to lose, her status as a hero and the hope the Resistance was putting on her. What would the rebels think of her if she even refused to fight one single invader and, on top of that, if it was only a sparring match? Of course she could say that she didn't want to hurt Set but that wasn't even true. She wanted to hurt him, not badly, but just so much to wipe that prideful grin off his face and to stop him from acting up like that!

    "What was that word again you humans have for someone like you who runs from a fight?" he pondered loudly and she couldn't keep her shoulders from shaking in anger.

    " _Don't you dare!_ " She warned him but Set only laughed at that and bent so closely down to her ear that she could hear his teeth clacking against each other. "Chicken…" he hissed satisfied and that was enough to make her snap; without another warning she wheeled around and punched her flat hand against his breastplate. Yet Set had expected her reaction and was quick enough to recoil to not bear the full brunt of her punch. Still her wild strength was enough to sweep him off his feet.

A loud whistling and howling erupted from all around them and in the blink of an eye the watching aliens rallied around the fighting couple but not without an appropriate safety distance. In the meantime Set had rolled and jumped back to his feet lightning fast. His eyes were flashing  both combative and thrilled, a wild grin on his face.

    "Come now sweetie, I know you got more than just _pushing_." He riled her more and the achieved effect clearly written all over her face made him laugh out. Jenna clenched her fists in a last attempt to reign herself in and rolled her head to the side, cracking her vertebrae.

    "Alright, babe you asked for this…" she growled and woke the slumbering Pakrit in her body. Almost joyfully it rushed back into her muscles, building them up until her arms and legs were quivering in eager excitement. Set's grin got a tad more serious when he held the glare of her burning eyes but then he raised a hand to wave her mockingly towards him. The Zar'tak was suddenly urging her at the edge of her consciousness but she simply blocked him out like a bothering noise.

    "I shall be yer referee!" A familiar voice called from the crowd and Jenna saw Jak scuttling through the crowd of aliens from the corner of her eyes. The old Vortian seemed visibly keen for the fight. It wouldn't have surprised her if he had made himself a board with her name on it.

Torn out of her concentration like that she sensed a moment too late how Set jumped forward and grabbed at her. The spectators let out a scandalized howl and Jak laughed raspily at the sneaky attack. Surprised Jenna spun over her shoulder and out of his way, jerking her leg up to wheel kick at him in the same motion, but Set knew this move from her fight against the Butcher, dropped down into a plank and her leg cut the air ineffectively. With a quick swiping kick he got her off her feet and grabbed her to pull her into a wrestle arm lock.

Startled by his speed and absolute lack of restraint she could only react instinctively, kicking and thrashing until her fist collided with his chin and he let up on her for a brief moment. Jenna bobbed up and jumped on his back, trying to pull his arms back and make him unable to move. She finally managed to twist his metal arm to the point where the servo joints jammed and she was already about to laugh in triumph when she heard a noise from beneath her. The Pak, she had forgotten all about it! Six spiderlegs shot out of his back like a giant fist, punching the air out of her when they threw Jenna off of him. The sharp blades tore the hard fabric of her overall as easily as her skin, drawing blood. Before she could crash on the ground she spun in the air and landed on her feet.

Frowning Jenna palmed over her stomach and looked down on her blood smeared hand. Yet the cuts were more ugly than really alarming, and closing already, but the message was plain.

Set got up on his feet as lithely as before, rolling his biomechanical shoulder joint and turned around to her. His eyes were infused with Pakrit as well and the metal spiderlegs danced around him like impatient fingers tapping on a desk.

    "That thoughtless stunt would've killed you under normal conditions, but I figured I'd hold back for now, after all you're still new when it comes to actual fighting." He raised a couple laughs but that only riled her up more; her knuckles were already poking through her skin so hard they turned white. But of course Set had to go the extra mile: "I'm serious, usually she's not that timid if you know what I-"

Silently she dashed forward and rammed her shoulder into his guts. Set gasped n surprise but although she had thrown herself against him with all her strength he didn't go down; his armor reduced most of the energy and his spiderlegs braced against the ground. This way he managed to wrap one arm around her neck, turn her around and twist her arm back with his titanium hand until she grunted at the pain. "Get serious already, this is pathetic! You won't last five seconds against Red alone if you keep fighting like this!" he snapped furious at her when she struggled in his grip. " _Fight_ already!"

Jenna roared angrily, grabbed his arm around her neck and jumped up, the only direction where his lock was ineffective. Once she felt his hand slipping from her wrist she knocked her arm back with brutal force, right into his face. This time Set was thrown back but again he was back on his feet quicker than she thought only to launch himself on her once more. Instinctively Jenna dropped on her back and rolled, drawing her knees to her chest and placing her hands on the floor next to her head. In one fluid motion she kicked against Set's chest in mid-air. The Irken sailed across the room and came crashing down with a curse while she pushed off the ground and jumped on her feet.

The brief respite gave her time to analyze his movements and sharpen her mental abilities until she didn't feel so panic-stricken anymore. Even Set seemed to be taking a more cautious approach now because instead of immediately attacking her again he circled her warily, his arms raised like a boxer and his spiderlegs bent like the claws of a praying mantis. The crowd had gone silent in awe, only here and there they cheered for Jenna or Set.

Set spat out a mouthful of blood and took another step to the side that Jenna copied into the opposite direction. His grin was gone, he was looking completely focused and grim like her.

    "You have no chance. Lenka was one thing but I'm on a complete different level and _they_ again are in a whole other league. They won't hesitate to kill you."

His voice was dripping with hatred but she knew it wasn't meant for her. Jenna feigned a jump forward and watched contented how he reacted before he recognizing the juke. Now that would work.

    "You forgot something important Set." Again she deked him and saw the impatient twitching in his hands. "The Tallest could've killed me but instead they only ordered the Vortian to kidnap me. They want me alive." She explained calmly while her legs were filling up their muscles with Pakrit. Her skin was tingling as if electrified. "They know that I am the only other life form besides your kind that can use the Pakrit and because of that they want me for their goals, for their experiments."

Set shook his head defiantly. She couldn't see if he was tensing up under his suit but she felt it in his thoughts. He was indeed much stronger than Lenka in her battle suit but his mental abilities were weaker than hers and he couldn't block her out as easily as the general had been able to.

When she feigned another attack he suddenly shot forward himself to put an end to that cat-and-mouse game, just as she had expected him to, and tried to knock her down. As quick as a wink Jenna dove away under his hands and Pak legs and grabbed his wrist when she spun around. With a fierce jerk she tripped him up and sent him on his back. His spider legs already darted out from underneath him but their great reach was now their disadvantage. She dropped on the ground, wrapped her legs around Set's neck and was now too close to him for the spider legs to reach her while he was on his back like that. He hissed outraged and clutched at her but before he could actually grab her Jenna had snatched one of the flouncing Pak legs and pressed the razor sharp tip against his temple. Set froze in start.

Both were breathing heavily, Jenna felt his labored intakes under her thighs and tightened her grip on the metal spike, the fight was over.

    "So who's the dead one now?" she demanded to know and tensed her legs until his breathing seized and his narrowed eyes snapped open. The hand that had reached for her calve now smacked lightly against it, then a bit more hectic. At first Jenna wanted to make him suffer a while longer but then she had second thoughts and let up on him. Quickly she came back on her feet, shooting Jak an expectant glance.

The old Vortian was the only one who didn't seem to be surprised in the least by the fight's outcome and grinned at her with unconcealed pride.

    "Welp folks, sure is lookin' like our invincible invader finally met his master. Do me a favor an be fair with yer bets aight?" With this he patted Jenna on the back and left her to the cheering aliens. She felt a victory grin coming over her but when she turned around Set was halway out of the gym, his antennae cutting the air angrily and he shoved the pilots, that were trying to congratulate him on the good fight despite his defeat, out of his way as he made his way through the press. Most of them were smart enough to avoid the invader in his hurt pride.

Jennas initial dismay was quickly smothered by her own annoyance. If he thought he had to play the sore loser now she didn't care. After all he had started this all by riling her up like that! Still she felt a little remorse for putting him in his place so nonchalantly, she knew that his temper and arrogance were only meant to hide what was really going on inside his mind, something he, as an elite soldier and infamous invader wasn't willing to admit to himself.

 _Men…_ Jenna thought irritated and turned away, she would deal with this later. Now she had to further test her abilities and use up the Pakrit for good. She didn't want to face Set as unearthly entity yet again just to lecture him. If he felt threatened in his manliness by her powers then she would at least budge an inch in this regard.

When she turned around the Zar'tak was standing in front of her, wroth, with his four arms crossed and his five eyes narrowed in reproach. She gave him a crooked grin and playfully nudged his consciousness with her own.

    _"Did you really think he'd seriously hurt me?"_ she razzed him and watched the way he trembled slightly.

    _"I admit that it looked… daunting for a while and I am honestly relieved you didn't get all that injured in the process. But we cannot afford to lose either one of you or you as a team! The Resistance needs both of you if they want to destroy the_ Hive _, if you fight it will endanger the entire plan! If you wish I might be able to conciliate."_

Jenna took a step back, scandalized. Her relationship with Set and their problems was absolutely none of his goddamn business!

    _"Set is_ my _concern. You're just here to help me improve my mental abilities, so please don't intrude. He's already on the outs with you anyway because you disobeyed his orders, I have a hard time imagining he would allow you out of all people to lecture him."_

Before he could return anything at that Jak was by her side again and smacked her back good naturedly.

    "Ah, no worries kiddo, he'll bounce back, soon as he's done lickin' his wounded pride." He said and nodded towards the door Set had just stormed out of. "Was one hell damn fine show, who'da thunk a small thing like yerself'd shellac him that quickly. None of them boys did, that's for damn sure. 's no wonder he's foamin' with rage." He eyed her from head to toe and nodded impressed. "Ya really got on sweetheart… Ria would be damn proud of ya." He added mumbling and she smiled.

    "Yeah, I guess she would… I wish she was here, she could tell us so much about the Paks. And you? Did you get somewhat used to your new freedom yet?"

The scarred Vortian snorted and gave her a lopsided sneer.

    "I'll only truly feel free once the Empire lies in shambles an the Tallest are destroyed…. Till then I'm gonna make do with food that's improved by light years."

Jenna laughed quietly, she understood very well why he felt this way. As long as the Irkens were terrorizing the galaxy it was foolish to consider oneself safe for one second.

Suddenly she became aware that the other aliens were looking at her all expectantly and somewhat nervous, an excited aura surrounding them.

    "What?" she asked confounded into the crowd and the Steelhunter Set had thrown across the gym before sheepishly rubbed over his slightly dented helm.

    "Well, we… err, we would like to train with you, if you don't mind of course, show you a few tricks y'know?" When she didn't immediately declined and instead smiled at him delighted he added more self-confident: "I noticed some flaws in your stance that made you slower than you could have been and I bet with your small size you can get even faster and agile."

Jenna just grinned excited and nodded.

 

The pilots took turns taking her on one on one and every one of them held other surprises for her. For one it turned out surprisingly difficult to throw the Steelhunter over her shoulder the way Set had, most of all because she was way smaller than him but also because Rok, as he was fittingly called, was weighing near to two tons. Jenna would have never imagined to throw Lenka in her battlesuit, or the Butcher, but there was something undeniably satisfying about the thundering crash with which she smashed Rok into the ground in the end. After the other fighters had stopped shaking from laughing and howling they all suddenly attacked Jenna on a silent command, thus forcing her to demonstrate her whole cunning and skill. After she had overcome her initial shock she went through her opponents like a lightning bolt and allowed the Pakrit to take full control over her body and mind.

Hand-to-hand combat was like a dance, a dangerous dance were you'd definitely receive a few good bruises if you didn't pay attention to the steps and who was leading. Jenna was a good dancer and, with aid of the Pakrit, a remarkable fighter once she got the hang of it. One after another she knocked the rebels down and although she was breathing heavily in the end she was the last one standing and hadn't even broke a sweat. All around her the defeated pilots and soldiers were groaning and cursing more or less pained; only Jak was the only one who hadn't lost his humor: he had a whale of a time and held onto his scrawny sides.

But Jenna noticed the Pakrit's effect already dwindling and now she felt her own injuries as a dull pain in her entire body. The spot where Set's Paklegs had cut her skin was burning terribly and her shoulder was throbbing uncomfortably.  If she didn't shift down gear now she wouldn't have enough Pakrit left in her to repair the damage. Quickly she stepped over the groaning pilots and accompanied Jak who was sitting on a bunch of crates, his bent legs crossed.

Sighing contented she sank down against the wall and closed her eyes for a moment to catch her breath and power down her pulsing muscles. Her heart had calmed after two breaths already and the Pakrit crept out of her muscles and under her skin to heal the bruises and lesions in her body. The sensation was strange, as if tiny ants were crawling under her skin, moving the tissue and cells around. She could virtually hear them.

Curious she focused on the happenings inside her body until Jak's snickering made her look up.

    "Dead honest, Jenna? If ya should really lose against the Tallest or that _Jive_ it's only 'cuz someone cut of yer arms an legs, an even then I ain't sure you'd lose. I know I've seen the fear in their eyes when ya punched that two Vorn into paste with nothin but yer bare hands an yer suit. They know just how dangerous you really are, even without the Pakrit. 'Cause ya ain't got none respect or fear for them.

Jenna smiled but slowly shook her head.

    "It's called _Hive_ Jak. And to be honest I am terrified. Not even because of what they could do to me but what they would threaten to do to _you_ to keep me from fighting. When Ria died and I was convinced I'd never see Set or the Earth ever again… I just had nothing to lose anymore and because of that I wasn't afraid anymore. I wasn't afraid of dying anymore. But now… now I have Set and you all and I don't think I'd sacrifice either of that just to destroy them." She said under her breath and rubbed her throbbing shoulder. The Vortian grunted concurring.

    "Yeah, now they got a way to get to ya… but the fact that yer still putting others before yerself just shows me how strong you are . Despite all the pain and destruction yer been through ya still stayed yerself… stayed human. And that'll be the Irkens' doom; it's what makes yer a rogue element."

    "Or a very predictable element." She muttered darkly.

Jenna left the hangar without the Zar'tak; after her fight with the rebels he had vanished without a word but she was glad to have a moment of peace and quiet for once and was left alone with her thoughts.

The city was abandoned and she didn't met a single soul when she crossed the air field to get to the headquarter. The twin stars had already set but the night was illuminated by countless of stars. For a moment she stopped and looked up, searched helpless for some familiar stars but when you're suddenly almost at the other end of the galaxy all the constellations were alien and new as well. Jenna wished she could somehow see in which direction the sun, _her_ sun, was. Just the mere sight, to know that it was still out there would have calmed her down. When the cold wind freshened she trembled and entered the Resistance's headquarter. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soooo, Jenna and Set duked it out pretty nicely, huh? Betcha they gun duke some more later huuuuuh?? *nudgenudge* *winkwonk* *bingbong*  
> Augh I enjoyed Set's shit talk way too much, I love to bring back the old asshole in him. He's just such a badass >3  
> Get ready for the big heart-to-heart talk next week! This won't be pretty, lemme tell ya!


	79. Leaving Home Base - Pt. 4 (1/2)

**\- 28 Leaving Home Base -**

**Part 4**

_  
A few moments later – Planet of the Resistance – HQ_

   
She found Tork was not alone in his office; an old, hard Vortian was with him and the two of them were leaning over a small holographic stellar map, floating above the table, when she entered. The Vortian raised his gaze off the map and scrutinized her thoroughly, yet without the distrust or even disgust Xakahr would have met her with. Instead there was an unashamed curiosity in his keen, dark purple eyes and something like sheer veneration.

Fascinated she eyed her opponent closer; he had to be very old judging from his twisted, curled horns and the wind tanned, lantern-jawed face, covered by age marks and spots.

Tork followed his gaze and gave her a nod.

    “Jenna, I assume the Pakrit’s effect has already worn off then.” He greeted her and interlaced his fingers, elbows propped on the tabletop. Jenna nodded in turn and approached them.

    “Yeah, sparring with the pilots really drained me, especially when they all came at me at once. But I’m sure Jak will have told the whole Resistance about how that fight turned out by tomorrow.” She replied and the stranger chuckled deeply. When Jenna saw the laugh lines forming around his eyes she immediately took to him despite his coarse appearance. Tork cocked an eyebrow at her.

    “I do hope you left them alive. We still kind of need that ruddy lot.”

She made a played guilty face at that and the old Vortian broke out into a roar of laughter.

    “To all hell, Tork, why didn’t you introduce her to me sooner? _This_ is our secret weapon against the Tallest? Marvelous!” He boomed and slapped his broad thigh. Jenna shot him a pleased grin and signified a little bow in his direction.

    “The pleasure is all mine… uhm…” she halted, Tork had indeed not introduced them to each other but before the Commander could say something the other Vortian planted himself in front of her and raised a clenched fist to his chest.

    “I am Commander Gorn. But you can just call me The Captain, like everyone else who has the guts. And if you don’t mind me saying: If it wasn't for that long-ass son of a gun hovering about ya so jealously… damn it I would shower you in riches just for another smile.” He added with a lewd wink. Beside him Tork made a gagging noise in his throat.

    “Cut it out you randy old devil and don’t voice something like that out loud in the presence of my new SIC… I do prefer your ugly old mug _with_ teeth after all. But, since he already brought it up: a little black _gorger_ told me there’s trouble in paradise.” The look out of his red eyes was crisp but also concerned and while he didn’t spoke his own mind it was clear to see that his concern was stronger than the rebuke.

Realizing just who must’ve told him about her fight with Set, Jenna had to clench her hands into tight fists to not snap; still she couldn’t help grinding her teeth and eventually spitting out:

    “That goddamn _snake_! The next time I see him he will be my next _sparring_ partner! God, I told him that's none of his damn business!” Her furious hiss caused the Captain to shoot her a surprised side glance. Tork raised a hand to slow her down.

    “Hey, I know that things were already pretty heated between you because of the whole Pakrit-shebang, but that you two would actually go so far as to be at each other’s throats about it is a whole nother story. The Zar'tak said that Set hurt you in the fight. And looking at your overall… Cap, stop gawking like that, you are a disgrace for the entire Resistance!” he snapped at the other Commander. Jenna caught Gorn quickly averting his eyes from her and shook her head so fiercely that some strands loosened from her bun.

    “It was nothing, just some scratches, and I didn’t exactly handle him with kid gloves myself, okay? It’s just… he doesn’t want me to fight, to even possibly get anywhere near the Tallest, or a fight, no matter if he’s with me or not.”

Exhausted she sank on one of the weapon crates Tork had packed along with other stuff from his office. Now that the Pakrit had left her body it was just a single maltreated knot of pain and _hunger_. She had already noticed this particular side effect right after her fight with Lenka; the Pakrit left her incredibly hungry. But she ignored her rumbling stomach and the dizziness for now and focused on what she wanted to explain.

“My guess is that Set thinks I’m going to slow him down, to weaken him when I join this fight. With me on the battlefield he would always have to fear that I might get hurt or captured, and that the Tallest might force him to drop his weapons this way. I figured this is why he didn’t want me to take the Pakrit again, despite it being completely safe for me.”

She had realized this after her talk with Jak and her own confession, her own fears, that Set wasn’t trying to protect her but actually afraid that he would not be able to protect her once they were out there. The Supreme Commander nodded slowly, from his gloomy expression Jenna could tell that he understood what she was trying to say.

    “I see… so that would be a downside of his new, decoded consciousness. Now that he is able to feel and perceive empathy like us, it makes part of him acting just as… _irrational_ as we rebels are considered to be by the Irkens. Hmm… I actually thought that his hard training as an invader and elite-soldier would counteract that to some extent…” he mused, lost in thoughts, and scratched his horns. Jenna nodded in agreement.

    “At first I thought so, too. But then again Set hasn’t quite had the time to adjust enough to his newfound emotions as that he would be able to simply suppress them. I don’t want to go into much more detail about this than I already have because I know for certain that he would never forgive me talking about his feelings to someone else like that… but he is still afraid of losing me again, even more so after the whole kidnapper- _shebang._ ”

At Tork’s darkening expression she straightened her shoulders and tucked her hair behind her ear. “But that doesn’t mean I’ll allow him to wrap me up in cotton wool and keep me out of every little danger! Thinking about what I’ve been through on his ship alone and on the _Massive_ , and that in so little time… I’d feel almost embarrassed if I bailed from this fight. I will help you find the _Hive_ and destroy it for good because the future of my own species depends on our success as well. And I haven’t given up on Earth just yet.” She asserted full of resolution. Her speech had brought a grim smile back on Tork’s face and he gave her an approving nod once she was done.

    “Didn’t expect anything else from you, Jenna.”

The Captain smashed his fist on the table and laughed resounding.

    “She’s some woman, indeed. You didn’t promise too much, laddie. The other council members will soil themselves out of fear when they realize whom they almost denied their support.” Then he stopped for a second and looked her over again. “Maybe we could alter her height a bit, she should look awe-inspiring on first glance, don’t ya think? And those dogs value height over anything.”

Jenna couldn’t keep a gale of laughter when she imagined herself kicking ass in high heels but Tork shook his head with a deep sigh.

    “And make her a widely visible target that way? No; believe me, the second she uses the Pakrit her height won’t matter anymore. Besides, Trook just messaged me that he has your suit ready and it only needs one last fitting before you’re able to use it.”

Suddenly a holographic display popped up over the tabletop and one of the comm techs from the _Rebellion_ appeared on screen.

    “Commander Tork, sir! We just received a hail from the Planetjackers; shall I put them through?” the snail creature asked, saluting sharply and flinging some threads of slime across the room what caused a few grossed out noises in the background. The first Commander grunted allowing but his mood had already visibly darkened again, while the Captain was looking downright furious, when the display changed and showed two aliens in heavy space suits, hailing from the inside of a space vessel. Two thick tubes were connecting their breathing masks on each side with a big container on their back and the bigger one of them was sucking lazily on one end of those tubes he had stuck inside his wide mouth. The smaller Planetjacker greeted Tork with a casual wave.

    “Ah, Commander, how’s it going?” he piped cheerfully and seemed to completely miss the sour expression spread across the Vortian’s face. “We just wanted to check in with you and tell you that we’re taking your kind offer. Your planet for a tidy little sum, all right. Hey, normally we don’t do _commission_ stuff but, well, just go and _jack_ the planets as long as it’s not one reserved for conquest by the Irken military. Cuz they mean trouble. But since they started to put their lil flags on more and more planets we’re kinda running low on fuel and we’ve had our eyes on your little rock for a long time now…”

When Tork still didn’t return anything at his claptrap and instead only gave him an even more irritated glare the Planetjacker fell silent with an awkward cough. His partner let go of the pipe in his mouth, smacking his lips and raising a massive paw.

    “Is good planet, we very grateful for offer and payment no problem. Just say when you be gone, then we get planet and end of story.” He hummed in such bad Vortian that Jenna was inevitably reminded that, even among advanced alien races, there were still language barriers and foreign tongues.

Tork gave a curt nod, tapping the tips of his fingers against each other like a super villain what actually fitted his currently displayed mood and the human reminded herself silently to never ever get on his bad side... ever!

    “So it’s a deal then; excellent. The Resistance won’t forget your assistance, that’s for sure. My lieutenants will work out the details with you. Until then, and take care.” With this he cut the connection and sank back into his chair with a growl. “And once we’ve dealt with the Tallest we’ll take care of those rotten thieves next…”

Confused and quite worried Jenna stood up from her crate. Although she didn’t really understand what the hell had just happened, the short conversation had contained enough alarming keywords.

    “W- wait, hold up – what did he mean with _fuel_? And... taking the planet? Did you just sell this planet to those… Planetjackers?” she asked startled and Captain Gorn lost himself in an uncontrollable fit of swearing.

    “It’s a damn shame that we sell off our home to those mass murderers Tork! Until now they only didn’t dare to show their ugly faces because our fleet outnumbered them five to one, but now that we quit the field they’re just gonna get bolder and bolder, those planet jacking cocksuckers!”

Once he had caught himself again he turned to Jenna, his voice barely under control. “Planetjackers live in a system whose star has reached the last stage of its existence. Their sun used up all its natural fuel and impends to turn into a red giant and consume their home world. To prevent that from happening, their species developed a truly devious way to tear planets out of their orbit and tow them towards their own solar system. Once they’re close enough they release their loot and it gets pulled into their sun by its massive gravity field and the planet’s matter gets burned and added to that of the dwindling star, just like fuel.” He snorted bitterly. “Instead of evacuating their home world and colonies to another system and leave their sun to its demise they turned into honorless planet-thieves that don’t even shy away from tossing _inhabited_ planets into their sun, making them responsible for thousands of extinct races and countless of dead, all just to keep their dying star alive for a few more decades! Sometimes I wonder if they’re not secretly helping the Irkens to subdue the entire galaxy… augh, or maybe I’m just too old for this crap.”

At the thought that the Planetjackers might have one day chosen the Earth as a lucrative target Jenna felt a shiver running down her spine and she was actually glad that Set had basically declared the Earth Irken territory by trying to conquer it.

Tork grunted his agreement and stood up from his chair to pace a few steps through the room, his tension almost palpable.

    “I know, but at least we’ll effectively get rid of our traces. As long as the Tallest don’t find our base, no matter if abandoned or not, they will keep combing this cluster, what gives us even more time to prepare our attack and get a good head start on the armada. As much as it grieves me having to destroy our new home world it is only for the good of the Resistance and the rebels we bear responsibility for, Cap. So, here’s the schedule for the next cycles: Jenna, you’re gonna work things out with Set, understood? I need you as a unit or I will have to split you up entirely! Tomorrow you’ll visit my brother first thing in the morning to get your new suit, after that it’s drill session with the other pilots and fighters for you. Don’t you think you’re exempted from physical training just because you can use the Pakrit whenever you like; I want to be able to deploy you with _and_ without the stuff and for that we need you to be in peak form, or at least fit enough that you can keep up with everyone else when it comes to the crunch. After that I’ll send you back to Nemon for another round of Pakrit test runs.”

Exhausted he wiped over his face and shot her an excusing smile. “I know, it’s much to take in but we’re in the crucial last moments of this war and you swore the oath, so you’re in it as deep as we all are, maybe even deeper. If we had more time…” Tork broke off when he noticed the grin on Jenna’s face. “What’s so funny, soldier?” he asked seriously surprised and she shook her head.

    “I just remembered when you took me to the shooting range on the _Rebellion_ and all I was afraid of was that you’d force me to run laps. And now I just think I’d rather run two rounds around the planet than have you drilling me at the shooting range again.”

He returned her grin and raised one finger chidingly.

   “Don’t you think for a second that I will let you skip weapons training, human! You need a _lot_ more practice when it comes to that! And now go get a snatch of sleep, you will need it.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hmmmm? What does Part 4 (1/2) mean you ask??? Weeeell, I had planned a nice, big capter for this easter holiday but then my laptop decided to be a total d!ck and crash on me AFTER I had finished translating the ENTIRE chapter and now half of it is just GONE and I need to RETRANSLATE it...
> 
> Anyway, here's your first half of this Sunday's update, you'll get the second half on Easter Monday because it's 2 am rn and I'm still wracked from three night shifts 8D
> 
> And yeah, Planetjackers are a total thing in this story, and they are not very nice :> since some of the inhabited planets tried to bargain their way out of getting tossed into the fiery hell that is their sun the Planetjackers have become rather stinking rich over the years and use that moneys in turn to buy up planets from the Irkens or, as in this case, from desperate people :B
> 
> Happy Easter peeps!


	80. Leaving Home Base - Pt. 4 (2/2)

**\- 28 Leaving Home Base -**

**Part 4**

  
Jenna took her leave from the two Commanders and made her way back to the MedBay complex. Her stomach churned into a hard knot the closer she got to the flat building that also housed Set’s and her shared quarter, and her thoughts were only running around the inevitable confrontation with Set and their talk, if there was going to be an actual talk what solely depended on the mood the Irken would be in when she walked through the door.

It turned out that she didn’t get to even do that: in the middle of the hallway that was only illuminated by the blue emergency lighting someone suddenly grabbed her wrist and pushed her back against the wall. Startled to death Jenna wanted to scream out, but the impact with the hard wall drove the air out of her lungs so that she could only utter a thin squeak. A massive shadow fell upon her and before she knew what was going on a metallic hand braced against the wall right next to her head with a deep whirring. The red lights in between the titanium joints lightened Set’s grim face just enough that she could see his eyes glaring at her from deep shadows, his mouth tightened into a hard line.

Jenna exhaled trembling and although her panicked heartbeat was pounding in her ears she was certain that Set hadn’t said a word. She knew that this was his way of _confronting_ her about their fight while making sure he would have the upper hand in this at the same time, which could only mean that he not only hadn’t calmed down again but had instead worked himself up into a real frenzy over his own anger. The worst thing she could do now was meeting him with the same energy, why she took some more seconds (in which he continued to look daggers at her) to catch her breath again and scale down her own outrage so far that she actually managed to smile at him.

    “Hey.” She cooed and summarily grabbed the collar of his overall to pull him down towards her and kiss him.

Set hadn’t expected something like that in the least and thus he was so taken by surprise that he only remembered to struggle against it when Jenna was already parting from him again and leaned back against the wall like a good girl.

With a furious hiss his antennae flicked back against his skull and he ejected two spider legs from his Pak to smash them into the wall. Again Jenna needed a moment to reign her own anger in and calm down. “Alright, alright, you’re upset, I get it. Shouldn’t we get inside? It would make me feel uncomfortable if we woke someone in the middle of the night just because we’re fighting in the hallway.” She tried to reason with him and watched how Set’s eyes briefly widened before he narrowed them again and then answered her with barely controlled voice:

    “Ohh, you would feel _uncomfortable_? Your biggest concern right now is waking someone up and not, let’s say, getting _torn to pieces by sixteen spider legs_?”

He had hissed the last few words right into her ear and she quivered when his cool breath touched her skin and the sharp teeth grazed the rim of her ear. Still Jenna didn’t let his threatening gestures faze her and furrowed her brows.

    “Stop exaggerating Set, I know very well that you only have six spider legs.” She retorted to steal his thunder yet again but instead the metal hand next to her head turned into a fist and took one loud punch against the wall before he supported himself on it again.

    “I’m talking about the Tallest!” he snarled annoyed and now grabbed her lower jaw with his free hand, forcing her to look him in the eyes. “Because that’s what’s going to happen to you once they find you. They don’t need you alive, they’ll just go get another human, one that isn’t as insurgent as you, maybe even someone who wants to destroy the Earth himself and use him for their experiments instead! They told me exactly what they want to do to you and none of it involved your survival… only your destruction, until there’s not a single atom left of you. They don’t want you alive… they want your complete annihilation because you dared to oppose them and get away with it.”

He opened his mouth again to say something else but then their eyes met and he only growled angrily and turned his head away. The hand that had grabbed her chin sank down on her shoulder and loosely wrapped around her neck, his thumb softly stroking over her pulsing artery.

Jenna sensed that he couldn’t, or didn’t want to, speak out the most important part, the one that really mattered, and she decided to take the first step herself.

    “I’m scared, Set.” She whispered quietly and placed her hand over his to gently squeeze it. The invader snapped his eyes open and involuntarily perked his antennae as he looked down on her expectantly, hoping she was about to tell him that she would not fight but Jenna had something entirely else in mind. Now she would turn the tables. “I’m scared of losing you. You keep saying that the Tallest will kill me, but what about _you_? Do you actually think that I don’t know what they’re going to do to you should they find you? Okay, maybe they won’t kill you but they will destroy _you_ , your true self that I’ve fought so hard for. If I die, then I'll die knowing that I am still myself and that I fought against them till my last breath. But you… they won’t let you die so easily. They will find a way to force those Codes back into your mind and turn you into a puppet without a will of its own!”

Set had clenched his eyes shut while she was talking, baring his teeth as though he was going through hell. Then suddenly he snapped his eyes open again and his hand around her throat squeezed for a short, painful moment before he pulled her off her feet in a blurred motion and clutched her to his chest. His arms and Paklegs wrapped tightly around her like a net of metal, a protective barrier, and between all that cold steel she felt his warmer hand that desperately dug into her hair to pull her even closer, eventually causing her already loose bun to come undone, her hair spilling over the small of her back.

    “No, I would never allow that to happen! That you die while I live on… I can’t! I need you, I’m the only one who _needs_ you alive! Up to now I never thought about my future, didn’t waste a single thought on it and now I look at you and know that this is the only future I want! I want you! And I would rather die than let anything happen to you!” he gasped out strained and nestled his face into the crook of her neck so she couldn’t see his agony.

For a second Jenna was paralyzed by his breakdown and couldn’t move. Set was breathing jerkily and hissing and she suddenly realized that this was his way of sobbing what immediately made her tear up as well. But her bad conscience and initial dismay only lasted for a moment. Once she had composed herself again she smiled sad and dealt his chest a light shove. Confused Set allowed her to push away from him and even though his big, round eyes were breaking her heart she took a deep breath and finally said, choked up:

    “You’re selfish.”

Set was too shocked to react and just stared at her aghast. Jenna wiped her eyes with the ball of her hand and sniffled quietly. “Just because you don’t want to be the one of us that has to suffer the pain of losing the other you would let yourself get killed? Do you think you’re the only one of us who feels this way? Set, you’re everything, absolutely everything I had since I’ve left the Earth behind and you will always be everything I need, now more than ever before! I could also just go and say that I would sacrifice myself for you but that would be just as selfish as saying that I would kill myself should you die. Would you want that? That I kill myself just because you’re not around anymore? Or wouldn’t you prefer me to live on and try to get happy again?”

She gave him a searching look and he shook his head in terror.

    “Of course I wouldn’t want you to kill yourself! Don’t do that! Don’t you dare to kill yourself if I die!” he blurted out in start what caused her to grin crookedly. But Set already continued and now he actually allowed her to witness the pain on his face: “But at least you _could_ find someone else when I’m gone. I… I don’t know if I could ever again… you’re all I’ve ever known, ever learned to love… anyone else wouldn’t just… compare to you…” he muttered crestfallen and finally fell silent, his eyes cast to the floor. “But I do understand what you mean… and why you want to fight so badly. I wouldn’t want you to get me to safety so you could fight alone even though I’m strong enough to help you.” He breathed so quietly that Jenna first thought she had misheard but then she heard her own, relieved laughter and wrapped her arms and legs around him to pull herself up and cover his face and lips in kisses.

    “You tall, green idiot; and only to winkle that out of you we first had to bash our heads in?!” she chided him affectionately and let her tears run freely now as he in turn drew her closer and leaned his forehead against hers to kiss her and wrap his tongue around hers.

    “Of course! I thought this was all a human courtship ritual to strengthen our bond before we decide to stay together for a lifetime.” He buzzed against her lips and chirped scandalized when she flinched back to stare at him.

    “Wait… are you serious?” Jenna asked shocked with wide eyes until he started snickering and she boxed his shoulder with a groan, the non-metallic one mind you. “You asshole, I thought you were really about to propose to me! Yet we only know each other for… what, a little over a month? And I bet if you had, you wouldn’t even have a ring for me!”

Set put on a wolfish grin and ran his teeth over her jaw what made her gasp for air and caused a sting in her groin.

    “The only ring I can imagine for you is a nice one around your neck I can grab you so well at.” He murmured lowly against her neck and bit the thin skin until she whimpered. “Or rings around your wrists and ankles so I can chain you to the wall, or better yet, to the bed and don’t have to worry about you anymore… oh, I see you already have one.” He purred elated and reached around her back with his metal hand, grabbing the silver band of the Resistance that was hanging on her wrist, right above the Irken slave brand he had once burned into her skin, and twisted her arm on her back.

Jenna’s breathing stopped in her throat when Set pushed her against the wall again so that he could hold her up with only his spider legs and let his free hand travel over her upper body, all the way down to where his Paklegs had torn her overall open. An evil grin curled his lips as he stretched one of the holes open with his fingers, pulling the fabric down.

“Would you look at that, an express-access.”

Before she could voice her protest his hand had forced its way through the hole and palmed over her naked body underneath, the cold sensation educing a startled sound from her. Immediately Set was bending over her and closed her lips with a hard kiss. “Shhh, I thought it would make you feel uncomfortable if we woke somebody?” he teased her and let his thumb slide in between her outer labia, intentionally brushing over her clit. Jenna arched her back reflexively and moaned into his mouth. Set’s grin only turned wider under her lips and he caught the tip of her tongue between his sharp teeth while his thumb was slowly drawing small circles around her swelling clit. “So loud… you know I was actually already horny since that fight with you but there were too many people around for my taste.”

Somehow Jenna managed to free her tongue again and tossed her head to the side since his next stroke went right over her clit again.

    “Ahn, und you… thought that… such a hallway would… uhn!... be better, yeah?” she panted out mocking in between his firm strokes but it came out a lot less sarcastic than she had intended because she was a mess already. Thus her comment only made Set smirk while he ejected another spider leg that grabbed her bracelet so he could use his other hand to touch her breasts through the overall, pinching and rolling the tips until her nipples were standing out visibly under the thick fabric.

    “Exactly… of course it would be even better if I knew that right now someone was watching us over the security cameras like in Zim’s base.” He replied hoarsely and licked his lips.

At that thought Jenna stiffened and stopped his touches with her hand that wasn’t twisted onto her back.

    “Yeaah, about that; to you it may be the absolute turn-on to get watched while pounding me through the whole base but I actually feel pretty uneasy just thinking about it so… how about we take this to our room now?” she proposed sheepishly and noticed the frustrated look on his face but he did stop and let up on her so that she could finally stand on her own legs again, which felt like they had turned into jelly. Quickly she took his hand, interlacing her fingers with his while her other hand reached for his firm butt, grating her nails over the lower part of his back, close to the hips, what had him shiver violently.

    “But if you want to, we can go duke it out in a rematch and see who’ll win this round. Though I’m pretty confident I'll be able to defend my title and then I can do with you whatever I want.” She added with a suggestive waggle of her eyebrow, biting her lower lip. Set’s expression brightened in a second until he immediately leered at her again and buried his hand in her open hair just as suggestively to grab a handful of it and slightly bend her neck back.

    “We’ll see sweetheart.” He growled ominous and his eyes were gleaming with excitement. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HAPPY EASTER EVERYBODY!!
> 
> The dukeage shall happen next week... yes, I'm gonna feed you smut and then leave you hanging for a week *cackles evilly*  
> I should really go to bed now, I'm on early shift tomorrow which means that I'll have to get up at 4 am heyoooo 8D
> 
> I hope you all had a nice weekend and found lots of chocolate eggs and shit!


	81. Leaving Home Base - Pt. 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> New C U R I O S I T Y playlists up on Deezer!!  
> ►The Horror of Our Love : http://www.deezer.com/playlist/1702489981 (Thank you Helena for the awesome songs you put together!! ♥)  
> ►CRIMSON EYES | CODED MIND : http://www.deezer.com/playlist/1702437351  
> ►A Sky Full of Stars: http://www.deezer.com/playlist/1702640301

**\- 28 Leaving Home Base -**

**Part 5**

  
The door had hardly closed itself behind them when Jenna’s heartbeat already picked up its pace again in thrilled anticipation of what would happen next, and she barely dared to turn around to Set. When she did nonetheless, laying her head back to look up to him, her heart painfully skipped a beat and her guts turned into hot lava; his eyes were gleaming in the dim light and were unswervingly fixed on her, filled with utter _hunger_.

Both of them waited for a couple of breaths, eyeing each other alertly and challenging, trying to estimate who would be the one to make the first move.

When she heard the quiet whirring of his arm, shortly before it darted for her, Jenna dove away under his hand in the blink of an eye and skipped around him and out of his range, her hands raised combat-ready to fend off any further moves from him, but she was already grinning widely.

Set’s hand grasped at nothing and he stopped. Slowly, very slowly, he turned his head around to her and let his hand fall down again; no stir of his body giving away what he would do next and Jenna got the feeling that this dance could take a while.

Would he just chase her through the room till she was out of breath? Or would he rather make short shrift now and simply subdue her in a wink? He knew just as well as she that she wouldn't stand a chance against him without the Pakrit…

Again Set did a quick step towards her and again Jenna jumped back, now stepping around the bed to bring it between her and the Irken. He snorted and flashed her a voracious grin.

    “Do you really want to keep running away? That would mean I’ve basically won already and only have to catch you to claim my prize…. Come now, attack me already.” He purred furtive and opened his arms lavishly. Jenna continued to watch him warily but soon her gaze was traveling over his broad shoulders and the protruding trapezius muscles stretching his overall and she chewed her lower lip. Daniel may have already been pretty muscular but Set was a whole other level of _man_ and the sheer sight of these muscles, hard as iron, that could generate this incredible strength was enough to have her legs turn to jelly. To be perfectly honest, she would be completely okay if he just grabbed her and threw her to the ground to devour her. But she wanted to do him this favor.

So she cautiously snuck away from the bed and lifted her fists to her face the way the pilots had taught her, her legs slightly apart and bent to be quicker on her feet. She knew that Set had actually a few spots on him where she would only need to use a small amount of force to be somewhat able to bend him to her will but the real problem was to first get her hands on those spots.

Her heartbeat was fluttering in her throat when she crept closer and tried to intuit when he would pounce her. If she could just get a foot into the back of his knee or behind his foot…

Even before she had time to finish her thought his hand shot forward again and grabbed her overall. Startled Jenna could only watch in terror as his fingers dug into the fabric, but suddenly her hands moved on their own; reaching around the back of his hand with her one hand and pushing his elbow up with her other hand she rolled his arm around and took a step to the side.

Surprise spread on Set’s face when the leverage effect forced him down and his fingers slipped off her overall.

Being completely stunned herself that her hold had actually worked Jenna missed her opportunity to complete the technique and instead let go off him. Set immediately bobbed back up and took the rebound with his left hand to grab her throat. Again Jenna reacted instinctively – or maybe because there was still some of the Pakrit left in her bloodstream -, spun around towards his side, raising her shoulder and thus effectively brushing off his fingers while she grabbed his right hand which he had reflexively clenched into a fist. Quickly she slipped her fingertips over his and squeezed her own hand into a tight fist, applying pressure on his knuckles. A pained expression distorted his face and he immediately stopped grabbing for her.

With his antennae flatly pressed to the back of his head Set looked down on her over his shoulder, brows furrowed in irritated confusion.

    “Okay… where the hell did you learn that?” he asked strained and tried in the same second to yank his arm up but Jenna quickly leant over his forearm and warningly reinforced her grasp around his fingers until he hissed at the pain and stopped struggling. A wild grin curled her lips when she returned his angered glare boldly.

    “Oh I’m not gonna tell you… I think it’s much more fun if you don’t know what else I can do so you'll keep underestimating me.” She replied contented. “I could break your fingers if I wanted to and then your hand would be useless. So, I win.”

His expression promptly changed and her breath caught in her throat.

    “Honey… you’re forgetting I have _seven_ other arms I can use on you.” He rumbled laughing and opened his Pak with a sharp snap. Cursing, Jenna let up on him to get away from the ejecting spider legs but one of them caught her leg and swiped her off her feet. In the split of a second Set had pulled her towards him and was already bending over her, his other Paklegs pinning her wrists to the ground next to her head, while he spread her legs apart with his hands almost playfully to slide in between them and grind his crotch against hers. “ _So_ , now that you can’t move an inch I can… how did you put it again? Oh yeah…” he grinned and wrapped his arms around her thighs to lift her pelvis off the ground and chute forwards so that her groin rubbed almost painfully against the hard part of his pelvis. Beneath that she could already feel his member poking out of its sheath, bulging his overall. “ _Do with you whatever I want._ ”

Frantic Jenna tried to writhe out of his grip or kick him but Set was still pushing her legs apart, making them useless. But then a crazy idea hit her and she walked through the motion sequence in her mind while he already let his hands roam freely over her body again to get to the hole in her overall. It didn’t matter if she would make it or not, Set wasn’t expecting something like that for sure…

Quick as a cat Jenna tensed her abs and drew her knees to her chest, twisting her wrists inside what caused the spider legs to slip off, and rolled back and away over her shoulder. Set hissed surprised and lunged forward, his hand clutching a whole bunch of her hair. Jenna came to a sudden halt on her hands and knees and sharply inhaled at the pain but before she could even make a sound he already loosened his grip a little so that he was just holding her in place.

She cursed into the ground but couldn’t keep a grin; now he really had her. He gave a dark chuckle and pulled her head up so that she had to look at him, while closing in on her himself to kiss her and bite her lips.

“Not bad… but not fast enough for me.” He straightened on his knees and opened his overall with his free hand, slipping it off his shoulders and down to his hips. An uncomfortably wet spot had already pooled inside her own overall but when Set now prompted her to get to work with a silent tug on her hair, her pussy clenched almost needily.

His erection wasn’t fully pushed out of its sheath and for a moment she was baffled that he looked so similar to her down there but not a second later he rocked his hips forward, pressing his crotch against her mouth. Jenna gave a startled sound and felt a flush rising to her cheeks.

Usually his body was much cooler compared to hers but his sheath was literally hot when her lips touched the muscular ring of folds that normally kept his member sealed inside, and she tentatively pushed her tongue in between them, licking over his hard tip hidden inside. Set gasped aroused; his hand in her hair tensed a little and Jenna took his reaction to heart.

Quickly she found the small nub at the lower end of his slit and licked it shamelessly, rolling and rubbing the little pink button until she heard him utter a trembling moan and he couldn’t hold back anymore. His hard cock sprang out his sheath into her mouth and Jenna closed her lips around him, trying to push him back inside what educed another, higher gasp from him and had his legs shaking. Shifting her weight onto one hand she grabbed him, wrapping her hand around his shaft to stroke him, using her fingers to tease his upside down clit some more. Above her Set threw his head back, his whole body twitching from the waves of pleasure and suddenly he tried to push her away rather than pressing her head down on his cock.

    “W- wait…” he blurted out between clenched teeth but Jenna was far from stopping now and let her tongue circle his tip while she sucked him hard into her mouth, rubbing the throbbing nub beneath his sheath between her fingers. Set gave up his attempts to push her away and folded over her instead since he wasn’t able to keep himself upright anymore, bracing his hands on the floor behind her feet. “Shit… oh _fuck_ …” he panted, already short of breath.

Jenna let up on his dick long enough to pump him with her hand when she suddenly felt something cold and metallic slipping into the neck of her overall and ripping it open along her back.

    “Hey!” she protested scandalized but Set didn’t pay her outrage any attention, merely brushing down the remains of her overall before he leaned over her back again; the spider leg that had stripped her so unceremoniously now propped itself up on the floor so that he had one hand free to wrap it around her, running it over her stomach, down to her breasts and pull her closer to his body. Jenna whined as his sharp fingers pulled on her stiff nipples and she lifted her head to take him into her mouth again.

Set’s sweat-drenched torso was leaning heavily onto her back when even the Pakleg started giving way; the hand on her breast slid back over her belly and wedged between her legs to, in turn, rub her clit with one finger while the second one pushed into her slick, wet warmth.

She moaned against his cock, rocking her hips back against his finger and was pushed forward by him until his erection was nearly hitting the back of her throat.

His coarse swears in Irken were the sweetest music in her ears, mixed with her own, muffled sounds of pleasure when Set started rocking his pelvis into her and his hand moved faster between her legs until she was so soaked that a small drop ran down the inside of her thigh.

Suddenly he managed to upright himself again, grabbing her around the waist to summarily lift her off the ground and throw her on her back, onto the mattress. Jenna felt a brief moment of vertigo from getting tossed around like that and shook her head numbed, not fully conscious of what had just happened, when he already dipped his head between her legs to lick and suck her clit in the most delicious ways. Her high-pitched mewl rang through the small room and she quickly clasped a hand over her mouth while Set now added a hand to his slithering tongue to thrust  his fingers inside her and fuck her with visible relish, stretching her walls until she bucked her hips into his hand and mouth. Her own hand desperately clutched at his head, his antennae, to rub them, pull them and push his head down against her mound, wanting him so badly to just make her come then and there.

Shortly before she felt the releasing kick wash over her Set drew back, but not for long, just so that he could slide between her legs and grind his throbbing dick over her wet pussy. Jenna looked up to him and he returned her gaze just as heated and enamored. His face was tensed in concentration, multiple veins were standing out on his forehead that was dripping with sweat and his eyes were half closed in lust.

He reached for her hand and weaved his metal fingers through hers while his free hand grabbed both her legs to squeeze them together and press them to his chest. Her ragged breath caught in her throat when she realized what he was about to do and she could barely prepare herself as he already plunged into her, slowly, but he felt so big in this position that she couldn’t help another, throaty moan from pouring from her lips; being filled out like that and having her walls stretched so far that she could feel every inch of him inside her was almost too much.

He rolled his hips into her and Jenna gasped, felt how he reached even the backmost resistance inside her and she whimpered overwhelmed when he pulled back just to thrust into her again and again, keeping her firmly in place so he could fuck her hard and fast.

    "Oh- Set! So- unh- so-  _good_!" she sobbed out, her voice jerking with each thrust from him and desperate even in her own ears.

Set moaned over her in the same wanton abandon, more like a growl, and his fingers involuntarily dug into the sole of her foot when he tried to control his deep thrusts even more to last longer than her. The sudden prick in her foot was so intense and unexpected that Jenna screamed startled and her whole body tensed up. His eyes widened in shock and she felt how her walls clenched tightly around his cock, pulling him deeper.

The invader collapsed over her, his pelvis jerked forward erratically and a hot stream spilled into her as he came, riding his orgasm frantically out inside her now that he had lost control after all, moaning and cursing at the same time. Then Set simply dropped down on top of her and groaned exhausted before he slowly skidded a bit away from the bed so he could lay his head on her chest and look at her face.

During his sudden climax Set had twisted her legs to the side and now Jenna was buried beneath him with a rather skewed spine, why she first of took some time to get into a more comfortable position before she returned his gaze and took his face into her hands, smiling, one hand palming gently over his limp antennae. He was giving her an almost apologetic look, his mouth screwed into an Irken pout and she giggled quietly when he took one last shot to retaliate against her, letting his tongue flicking over her nipple.

    “ _I_ win.” She twitted him what got her another, sour expression from Set and she felt the growl in his chest vibrating against her stomach.

    “I’ve already forgotten how awfully _ticklish_ you humans are…” he groused sore but then his face eased up when she ran her fingers over his antennae again and he exhaled satisfied. “Sorry.” He added deploring but she just clicked her tongue in reproach and pulled him up to her so that she could kiss him deeply.

    “For what? Just because I didn’t get off with you doesn’t mean that this wasn’t absolute _devastatingly_ good sex, Set.” She retorted softly once he had parted from her again.

The invader already furrowed his brows to object but instead of letting him finish, Jenna pushed herself a bit away from him with her feet and propped herself up on one elbow, while her free hand first palmed over her breast, squeezing it wirh relish, and then down between her legs, closing his gaping mouth with the back of her hand in the same motion.

“And now that _I’ve_ won I can do with you whatever I want… and I want you to eat me _up_.” She breathed with her voice hoarse from arousal and saw the hungry flash returning into his eyes when he considered her with that predaceous grin of his, dipping his head.

    “As you command.”

   


  
_A few hours later - Planet of the Resistance - MedBay Complex living quarters_

 

Even before her Chronometer rang Jenna had already been wide awake for at least a few hours and rubbed her eyes, tired.

Once again she had jerked from one of those nightmares, drenched in sweat, and every time she had tried to close her eyes and get at least a little bit of sleep she had been thrown back into the same dream. Set hadn’t woken up from her restive tossing and turning and she envied his deep sleep like nothing else. His own Chronometer wouldn’t ring for another two Ti, something else she envied; being second in command to Tork sure put a lot of responsibilities on him but just as many privileges, and sleeping in a little longer was only one of them.

Jenna sighed quietly and slowly crawled from under the blanket, though she doubted that there was really anything that could wake him if her panicked flouncing hadn’t been able to accomplish that. Walking around in the dimness she stepped on the remains of her overall, sprawled and forgotten on the floor, and she couldn’t keep a grin when her thoughts traveled back to last night. At least that was something those nightmares couldn’t take from her and she stopped for a second, casting a glimpse over her shoulder at the sleeping, snoring Irken. She played with the thought of crawling back into bed and waking him up to get at least _something_ good out of this morning, but decided against it; after all he would train the fleet’s pilots today and he really needed his entire concentration for that.

She tossed the torn overall down the trash chute and took her old pair of sweatpants instead along with her last black top which she had finally gotten to wash, and she was happy to wear loose clothing for a change and not the tight, hard onesie that made her ass and breasts feel awkwardly accented. With her footworn sneakers in one hand she tiptoed out of her quarter and almost smacked into Car who was just passing by her room.

Startled she grabbed the Vortian’s shoulder and smiled slightly surprised when she caught herself again.

    “Hey, why are you already up?” she whispered elated but then she noticed that her vermilion eyes were looking somewhat swollen and teary. And indeed Car quickly wiped over her eyes and turned away from Jenna.

    “No reason.” She muttered quietly but her voice sounded hoarse and shakily. A little insecure Jenna didn’t know right away how she should react to Car’s clearly upset state without risking a punch against her arm, and settled on respecting her unspoken wish of not addressing the matter, nodding towards the door.

    “I couldn’t sleep and was about to head to Trook’s, go get my suit. Wanna come?”

She had the feeling that Car would prefer to leave the rebel city’s crowdedness behind for the time being, which was probably the reason why she was up so early, and just as expected she shrugged but followed Jenna after she had put on her shoes and started walking down the hallway towards the elevator that would take them towards the surface.

They kept silent the whole ride and most of the way out of the city into the desert. Only once they had left the city lights behind them Car huffed angrily and kicked at a rock with her hooves. Then another one, a scrubby bush and finally she lifted a huge rock over her head and hauled it away with a furious scream. Jenna waited patiently for her to finish venting her fury on the environment until Car stood there with labored breath, giving the broken rock a last glare, and then stomping on with wide strides.

    “Okay, that was... plain.” Jenna commented quizzically after she had caught up with her friend again. “Soo… something you want to tell me?”

Instead of answering her Car just uttered an inarticulate sound and kicked up a cloud of dust from the ground. Jenna just nodded with an “Uh-huh, uh-huh” noise and pretended to place a pair of glasses on the point of her nose and scribble something on a scratchpad. “Tell me _more_.”

The steaming Vortian stopped dead in her tracks, completely flabbergasted by the human’s weird behavior and stared at her with wide opened eyes and bewilderedly furrowed brows.

    “What are you _doing_?” she asked irritated and extended her arms in a “what the hell” kind of way.

Jenna smiled and raised her hands apologetic.

    “Aww, I as just pretending to be a psychiatrist who was writing down you sorrows. I wish we had a couch somewhere.” She explained chuckling and then sighed when Car’s expression didn’t change an inch. “Alright, I admit, _bad_ joke… What’s wrong, Car? Something’s clearly got you down, and please don’t even try to tell me anything else. If you don’t want to talk about it, that’s fine too, but please stop acting like you’re a-okay.”

Car crossed her arms in front of her chest defensively and avoided her gaze, staring out over the vast, bleak plains where, somewhere ahead of them, the deep chasm lay. The two suns hadn’t risen yet but the sky was already tinged in a blue light announcing the dawn of a new day.

    “Reliat and I had a fight.” She mumbled quietly and closed her eyes. Jenna sucked in the air between her teeth, already regretting she had asked, but too far by now to just drop the issue.

    “Was it bad?” she asked carefully and Car’s face screwed into a pained expression that didn’t bode well.

    “I broke up with him…” she said with trembling voice and now Jenna lost every last bit of composure she had left; she stared at Car aghast.

    “Excuse me? Why did you do that? Why _did_ you fight again, I thought everything was alright again between you after his return! Oh Car…” She was already about to walk up to her and hug her but the Vortian raised a hand to stop her and took a step back herself. Now she was frowning as if she had to concentrate to reign herself in.

    “Ever since he’s been back from that mission this damn _Pakrit_ is all he cares about! All he cares about is his goddamn research, day and night all he does is editing his notes and he only ever notices me when I, purportedly, messed up his damned datapads or disturb him in his work in any other way! We haven’t had  any sex ever since he went on that stupid mission!” she blurted out and opened her eyes again to glare at Jenna.

In spite of herself Jenna had to picture all kind of mental images and had to shake her head to focus again. She shot Car a more than commiserative glimpse and felt a sting of guilt; after all it was her that had caused all this commotion about the Pakrit since she had used it against Lenka.

    “I’m sorry…” she uttered downcast and tried frantically to come up with something better to say. “But don’t you think it’ll be only temporarily? As soon as your dad has all the data he needs and we’re done testing Reliat will snap out of it, I’m sure.” She tried to cheer her up but she just huffed again and stormed on towards the ravine.

    “Let’s not talk about that… now I need something to blow off some steam.” She growled angrily and didn’t even bother to wait until Jenna had caught up with her, who was already feeling a lot more miserable than before.

What a _great_ start of the day. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, Jenna sure did quite the clitical hit on Set, eh? *looks into the camera like in the Office* aah, my puns are the worst... much like my ability to plan a sex scene in my head and then write something completely different! Nailed it!  
> welp, at least Jenna didn't punch him for once - that would have been a straight K.O xD
> 
> see you next week, don't you love it when everything is going fine and dandy for a few chapters? yeah, me too...


	82. Leaving Home Base - Pt. 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Check out the C U R I O S I T Y Playlists on Deezer  
> ►The Horror of Our Love : http://www.deezer.com/playlist/1702489981 (Thank you Helena for the awesome songs you put together!! ♥)  
> ►CRIMSON EYES | CODED MIND : http://www.deezer.com/playlist/1702437351  
> ►A Sky Full of Stars: http://www.deezer.com/playlist/1702640301

**\- 28 Leaving Home Base -**

**Part 6**

_  
Ten minutes later – Planet of the Resistance – Trook’s workshop_

_33 days and 3 hours since abduction_

Trook greeted them a bit surprised, but completely awake himself and already up to his elbows in work. When he noticed Car’s sour mood he fetched them two of the coffee-like drinks and let his niece rummage through his newest weapons in peace while he took Jenna aside and towards the Irken machine that had finished building her suit.

    “It might look different from the original model but it’s also a whole lot sturdier and harder to destroy.” He explained and handed her the belt which was almost twice as big and heavy as the one she had given him for running the scans. But it fitted perfectly and judging from the big containers she could already tell that it was packing much more armor. “Go on, activate it. Since I couldn’t scan your body the sensors will have to calibrate themselves on you first, so please stand very still during the process.”

Jenna did as she was told and pushed the two pressure plates on the buckle. The belt booted up with a whirring sound and started flashing wildly, projecting a laser grid that scanned every inch of her body to measure it.

Patient she waited for the process to finish and only let her gaze wander around Trook’s workshop in curiosity. He really had acquired a whole bunch of new stuff since the last time she had been here. Suddenly she picked up a strangely bright sound, a clacking, that came closer and closer, but she couldn’t turn her head around to look since the laser grid was scanning her head. Then she heard Car inhale sharply, dropping something.

    “What the…” Tork muttered and did a step to the side to turn around, revealing a small, red eyed robot who stalked out of the back part of the cave just now. A big slab of metal had been welded across his metal chest to hide the big gaping hole in it.

    “ _SIR_?!” Jenna shouted startled before her disbelief shifted into a blind rage and she ripped the belt from her hip, ignoring Trook’s warning cry, to launch herself at the killer robot.

Everything happened at once; Jenna lunged over the low workbench and kicked at SIR, who only stared at her with his one eye before her sneaker crashed into his head, sending the SIR unit into the ground. Car and Trook were shouting and came running towards her but Jenna already bobbed up again and wanted to grab the small robot to tear him apart with her bare hands when she was grabbed and jerked back by multiple hands. She screamed confused and angry, trying to kick at SIR one more time while Trook and Car pulled her farther away from him.

Oddly enough he made no move to attack her himself but stayed stock-still on the ground, arms and legs drawn to his body and the single lens widened to its limit, fixed on Trook in silent anticipation. Now the eye was blue again.

    “But… what…” Jenna finally muttered confounded and stopped struggling against the two Vortians. Trook sighed quietly and let go off her to get the belt she had tossed away in her blind rage; Car hunkered down next to Jenna, stroking her arm to calm her down. SIR was still lying on the ground, now looking at her, biding. “What is going on, why… why is he _functional_ again?” Jenna asked after she had caught herself more or less, lifting a hand to point accusingly at the submissive SIR unit who actually had the decency to flinch away from her finger, alertly readjusting his lens.

Trook came back and handed her the belt.

    “I’m sorry Jenna, I should’ve warned you… but I'm afraid I must’ve forgotten about him.” He started, yet quickly fell silent again when her head jerked towards him in a fury.

    “ _Excuse_ me?! You mean to tell me that you simply _forgot_  you have a fucking killer robot running around in your workshop, who could’ve left it at any time to destroy us all?! Are you mad?!” Her voice was close to cracking. In her mind however Jenna knew that Trook would have never endangered the entire Resistance so negligently and a terrible suspicion grew in her.

But she decided to let him explain first, what required a lot of self-control from her, so she set her hostile glare back on SIR – she didn’t want to let _him_ out of sight for one second!  

    “First off, Tork knows that the SIR unit is back online again. It was Set who instructed me to repair him and he gave me the access codes for SIR’s memory core and his internal computer so that I could reprogram him.”

When he mentioned Set Jenna jumped back on her feet, throwing her hands into the air.

    “Figures! That goddamn asshole, that’s so _like_ him! He didn’t learn anything after all!” she blustered with newly enkindled wrath and changed to English to curse Set in the most colorful ways.

Trook took a few cautious steps towards her, his hands raised imploringly.

    “Jenna, you don’t understand, he just wanted to…”

She wheeled around and pointed at SIR again, wanted to virtually stab him with her finger.

    “No, Trook! This… _thing_ , this walking piece of scrap is responsible for Feorn’s death! Set knows that! And yet he doesn’t give a crap about what the mere sight of this thing will do to me! He just wants to have his little lackey stalking around his feet again and nothing else! Shut him down, _now_!”  she ordered sharply and only got angrier when she saw the deep frown on Trook’s face as he crossed his arms.

    “Can’t do that. Tork approved of it, he needs the SIR unit for the attack on Irk, he’s supposed to scout out the planet’s surface and a possible landing spot before we send in a team, and I won’t disobey his commands just because it sticks in your craw.”

That was plain. Jenna almost choked on her stunned gasp and the strictness in his voice was enough to vaporize her anger, making her flinch. But Trook’s expression changed the second she dropped her furious stance and he looked at her with a commiserative gaze, filled with his own pain.

    “I’m sorry, I know how much you suffered from Feorn’s death and that you’re still not over it; we all aren’t. And the fact that this robot isn’t even able to feel any form of guilt or remorse… it’s just not fair, I know. But you see the advantage the Resistance gains from him, right?” he tried carefully and exhaled relieved when Jenna nodded reluctantly even though she was close to tears now.

    “Yeah, I _guess_. But that doesn’t mean that I want him anywhere near me!” she added scornfully and would have loved to spit into SIR’s general direction but since she was standing in Trook’s workshop she chose to just keep looking daggers at the robot. Trook turned to him as well and clucked his tongue.

    “You may stand up, SIR.” He allowed coldly and the SIR unit slowly got up on his feet. Car gave him a warning glare herself before she got back to raiding Trook’s weapon’s stash, now that the danger had been averted. Jenna blinked surprised at SIR’s obedience.

    “You said you reprogrammed him… does that mean he listens to everyone now?” she wanted to know, not without interest and Trook swayed his head.

    “Well, anyone Set orders him to obey. Of course I’m one of them since I had him running around my workshop the entire time.” He admitted and she cocked a brow.

    “What do you mean ‘the entire time’? When exactly did Set drop by to ask you to repair him?” she chased it up curious, although she was close to freaking out again thinking that Set had apparently kept this a secret from her for a longer time. Trook shrugged and took the belt from her to carefully inspect it with an electric screwdriver.

    “He came a few cycles ago, right after that traitor tried to kidnap you. Waltzed into the shop without a word and just slammed a d.p.* with the access codes and blueprints of his SIR unit onto the bench. Then he asked me to repair it and reprogram it, and since this unit is not only the standard model for invaders but also a highly specialized combat drone, Set basically gave me all I need to build a whole army of SIR units for the Resistance, just like that. Unfortunately there are a few important pieces I lack, but as soon as the black market gets scent of this I’m going to get smothered in spare parts. Oh, and by the way, he wanted me to rewrite SIR’s core codes as well. His first priority now is to protect you at all costs.”

Jenna sighed deeply when she understood and rubbed her face with her hands.

    “Of course he did… what better way to protect me than to drill the very same killer robot that tried to kill me multiple times… and that killed someone who tried to protect me.” She had a few more insults she wanted to add but then she saw the furrowed brows on Trook’s face as he studied the belt and she got a bad conscience. “Is everything alright with the suit? I’m sorry I just tossed it away like that.”

Trook raised his upper lip into a snarl, baring little pointy teeth in the process.

    “Welp, since you interrupted the calibration so rudely I’ll have to reboot it first, but that’s almost done. But please keep _still_ this time, aight? If there’s an error during the calibration it might well be that the suit severs one of your limbs or simply crushes you upon activation.”

Jenna swallowed and nodded quickly.

 

On the second try the belt successfully finished its calibration and the laser grid vanished with a bright bleep. Trook nodded contented and circled Jenna, inspecting the belt once more and gave her the go-ahead to activate the armor. With beating heart and held breath she pushed the buckle and the suit was brought to life with a loud whirring: The thin but resilient undercoat shot out of the belt’s inside, following the shape of her body and wrapped itself around her like a second skin; where the fabric met it formed a thin system of seams while needles, as thin as the threads of a jellyfish’s nematocyst, burrowed into her muscles, tapping into the energy they produced.

All of this happened in the blink of an eye before the containers alongside the belt opened to eject the liquid, magnetized plating. A strong jolt went through Jenna as the material spread over her, running along the suit’s installed imprint, and immediately turned hard as steel at air contact, yet stayed light enough that she hardly felt the armor’s full weight.

An impressed sound escaped Jenna’s lips and she raised a hand to get a look at her new armor. Her old suit had been green, with thin, curved plating which, compared to this prototype, now seemed to have been more ornament than really protection. The suit Trook had developed could only be described as _Vortian._

It was completely black safe for a few brighter accents, like a big, silver circle on her chest, the sign of the Resistance. The chest plate was a lot wider than that of her old suit and bulkier, with thick plating covering her chest and upper body, along with a short, angled bevor to protect her throat. On her waist the plating continued into trapeze-shaped blades, connecting front and back armor, which were also thick and sturdy but provided a huge amount of flexibility due to their arrangement.

Her upper arms and shoulders were stuck under multiple layers of plating while sharp edged blades had been attached to her forearm protectors with which she would be able to fight her way out of a crush of opponents, not least because of the heavy set of half-gauntlets covering her hands.

Despite all that plating Jenna could bend her arm back without any effort to feel over her back. A broad band of small platelets covered her spine in between the two sets of armor protecting her upper back down to her iliac crest. When she reached up between her shoulder blades she felt something similar to a Pak and cried out in start.

Trook grabbed her gently around the shoulders and calmed her with a low chuckle that stopped her flouncing.

    “Don’t worry, that’s not a Pak, but an integrated backpack. You should be able to have your hands free when you’re out in the field. Here, this is where you can attach any kind of handgun, a simple click-in system.” He took her hand and guided it to the small of her back where Jenna could feel some sort of brace sticking out. Then he made her grab over her shoulder, next to the Pak-like backpack. “For your primary weapon. Tork will either allow you to have a shotgun or a small-caliber pulse rifle, depending on how well you do at the shooting range. So, how do you like your new suit?” he asked with visible pride and she nodded excited.

    “It’s… simply _awesome_ , Trook! I somehow feel like a walking tank but also much safer than in my old suit.” Jenna replied pumped and couldn’t wait to get out there and train with the other soldiers to show off her new armor. “How did you managed to get that symbol on the chest plate?” she asked delighted and imagined what else you could paint on the suit. Trook rubbed his horns sheepishly.

    “I admit I had to ask Set, after my first futile attempts, how that blasted machine was operated correctly. The first suit it spat out was… how do I put it… a _molten_ piece of plating. Yep.” He laughed out loud when he noticed Jenna’s shocked expression. “Don’t sweat it, I wouldn’t have let you test _that_.”

He cast a brief glance on one of the many Chronometers he wore around his wrist and raised an eyebrow. “You better hurry now, I believe the training starts in half a Ti.”

Jenna said goodbye to Car for now and returned to Trook to let him show her the new interface in her gauntlet's palm. She exhaled relieved when she realized the clever tinkerer had changed the language setting to Vortian and she was now finally able to read what she was changing in her suit.  
  


Not a minute later she raced out of the cave and up the ramp. A wild shout of joy erupted from her chest when her feet pushed off the gangway and she sailed the last few meters through the air, landing on the dusty desert ground and running on. The cold wind greeting her was like a second wake up call  and she filled her lungs with it until she felt like bursting. _Void_ , as Trook had proudly dubbed the prototype, was so much more efficient than her old suit that she needed a lot less energy to power it and that for a longer amount of time. The fact that Set had helped building this armor made her almost overlook that he had repaired SIR just to function as her bodyguard.

Almost...

Because when she noticed that the little pest was following her Jenna growled angrily and ran even faster until her boots were tearing up the ground, raising a giant cloud of dust behind her which was probably even visible from the _Vengeance_ high up in the planet's orbit. But SIR wasn't that easy to give the slip and he now activated the thrusters in his feet to catch up to her.

For a hot, raging moment Jenna was tempted to just break her sprint and swing her fist around to make him crash right into it but then she just shook her head like an irritated bull and tried to focus back on running. But the unbridled joy from before was definitely gone now that she had SIR running after her like an overly fixated dog. She yanked her head around.

    “Stop _following_ me!” she shouted at him. “Get back to Trook!”

SIR didn't show any indication that he was obeying her but came even closer. “I'm serious, stop following me!”

    “Negative.” She heard him buzzing and doubled her velocity again.

    “You stupid screwhead, fuck o-”, she _tripped_ over something in the ground and her world somersaulted. Jenna cried out in terror when she saw the ground racing towards her and jerked her arms up to catch her fall - but then she suddenly stopped mid-air with a jolt. SIR had grabbed her beneath her arms and set the thrashing human gently down on the ground. Furious and with flushed cheeks she wheeled around and shoved him away from her.

“Don't _touch_ me! Leave me alone you fucking murderer!” she screamed in his face and now kicked at him after all. SIR dodged quickly but stayed near her, looking at her with his single lens. His completely unmoved metal face was driving her mad and she clenched her fists until the plating crunched. Again she had to think of Feorn, the blood streaming out of his body in an unstoppable stream, and now she couldn't hold back the tears anymore.

“You know _exactly_ what you did, don't you?” she hissed, her voice dripping with hatred.

SIR cocked his head to the side.

    “Negative.” he hummed again and she took a menacing step towards him what made him jump back.

    “Don't you lie to me! You killed Feorn when he tried to protect me. _Feorn_! Tall, blue with stunning eyes and nothing but kindness in him, how could you forget someone like that?! And you just _slaughtered_ him...” she panted under tears. When the robot still didn't react she wiped her eyes and turned on her heel to cross the last hundred meters to the air field with wide strides. “What the hell am I doing here, it's no use anyway trying to reach any sort of conscience in you. You're nothing more than a _brainless_ killing machine.”

After a few steps she heard the silent whirring and clacking of his legs again and sighed annoyed.

 

As much as a hundred resistance fighters had already gathered on the airfield and even from far away Jenna could see that they were whispering and casting her glances. Great. She shot SIR another livid glare and already felt excluded and avoided again. Because of that she walked right up to Tork once she had spotted him and avoided the looks of the other fighters. The Commander gave her a quizzical look-over but when he saw SIR scuttling behind her he understood immediately and gave her a pitying smile.

   “Forgive me Jenna, I should have told you sooner that we reconditioned the SIR unit.” he apologized and hushed staggered when she raised a hand to interrupt him and took a deep breath.

    “Send. Him. _Away_.” she barely managed to utter and placed the hand over her eyes. “I can't stand the sight of him for another second. Please, Tork. I can't bear to have this... this _thing_ around me, I don't want to be remembered what happened every time I look at him.” she pleaded quietly and screwed her face to keep herself from crying in front of the soldiers. Yet she could hear the muttered remarks and tensed at the thought of spending the rest of the morning with this.

Tork nodded respectfully and then looked down on SIR.

    “SIR, go to your master and tell him he's supposed to keep you by his side, Commander's orders.” He barked at the robot and SIR saluted sharply before he skulked off. The soldiers that had been with them aboard the _Rebellion_ growled and snarled after him, the rest just recoiled warily.

    “Thank you.” Jenna mumbled exhausted and then got in line between the fighters, forming a loose formation, yet she kept her eyes locked on Tork and avoided looking at the others. The Commander cleared his throat and gave each of them a stern look.

    “Well then; you all are possible candidates for the strike team but not all of you will get admitted to this team, not by a long shot. Only the best have a chance.”

    “Then what's the _human_ doing here?” a stout Vortian muttered behind Jenna and she quietly clenched her fists. But apparently Tork had better ears than the soldier might've thought: his head jerked around and his wrathful eyes leveled on the secret grumbler.

    “ _Rex_ , twenty miles extra because you can't shut your damn trap for ten seconds! Another word from you and the team's next training will be under the supervision of Lieutenant Commander Set, do you understand me soldier?” he snapped and in the next second Jenna sensed how every single look was aimed at Rex in a silent warning and unspoken threat. The one addressed gulped shocked and saluted, stammering a “Y-Yessir”. Despite the satisfaction she felt Jenna couldn't really enjoy his punishment.

She didn't want any privileges just because she was able to use the Pakrit, she just wanted to contribute her part to end this war just like everyone else and wanted to finally get accepted by the rebels again after all she had done.

    “Good, the rest of you will run off the usual 20 miles and then follow me to the shooting range. Forward, march!”

With this Tork broke into a fast trot and the resistance fighters fell in one after the other, in a more or less orderly fashion. Surprised that Tork would actually run the miles _with_ them Jenna forgot to start running herself until Rex nudged her uncouthly in the side. He was a hand's width shorter than her but nearly as wide as tall and brimming with muscles that bulged benath his grey-green skin. His eyes were small and of a muddy ochre as he stared angrily at her, baring his teeth in a smug grin to reveal teeth just as yellow.

    “Come on human, show us if you truly _belong_ here.” he hissed and laughed spitefully at her.

Jenna furrowed her brows and tuned her suit to full leg support.

    “See you later, Rex, have fun running those extra miles.” she shot back and sprinted past him up to the front, right behind Tork. Behind her she could hear protesting comments and something like “cheater” but Tork just turned his head briefly and examined Jenna's new suit before addressing the upset soldiers following him.

    “That thing draws its power directly from her body to function. Do you want to switch places with her?” he asked sharply and just got muffled, negating calls back. Pleased he turned towards Jenna who was jogging right behind him with a gloomy expression. “ _I_ saw how you ran from that SIR unit, kid. Why don't you show these nay-sayers how fast you can plow through those 20 miles?” he prompted her and waved his hand invitingly at the open track ahead. “One round around the air field is exactly one mile. Go wild. Just watch out that you still have some energy left for later. Come on, I believe you could really use a bit of pride right about now.” he said and winked at her.

Jenna shot him a wild grin and already stepped around Tork to take the lead with wide leaps. Behind her she picked up the astonished calls of the soldiers that soon turned into avid cheering when she got even faster and turned around the first corner of the air field already. And even though she wasn't running nearly as fast as before, the display in her palm was showing 40 miles per hour.

She kept the tempo and every time she passed the group the rebels were cheering her on harder and some of them even high fived her. Despite the suit she was drenched in sweat after the first half of the distance and her legs were moving on their own while Jenna gritted her teeth and forced herself to keep running.

Finally she finished the 20 miles in barely three-quarters of an hour and fell on her back exhausted at the side line of the track. The backpack between her shoulder blades was poking her uncomfortably why she let the suit disappear inside the belt again and groaned in content as the cool air caressed her heated body. Tork gave her an acknowledging nod when he ran past her again and the lead that had formed around him clapped a round of applause. Rex had caught up to them in the meantime and although he still had to run another 30 rounds you could see it in his stubborn expression that he would get those over with as well without batting an eye. Jenna realized that he was a real fighter, not like the handful of rebels that had fallen far behind and didn't seem able to catch up with Tork anymore.

After another 45 minutes the first Commander finished his last round easy-going and indicated her with a nod to get back up and follow him. Thus Jenna got back in line with the soldiers and activated her suit. While Rex stayed on the track, and those who'd thrown in the towel toddled off, Tork left the air field and headed for the giant hangar, which also housed a vast shooting range in its underground. Unlike Jenna and the soldiers the Commander didn't seem to be exhausted at all.

    “Not bad, human, I just hope this suit makes you a better shot as well.” The Vortian quipped dryly and she groaned internally at the thought of the impending humiliation she was about to suffer.  
  


* * *

  
  
d.p. = Datapad

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Edit: Unfortunately I won't be able to update next Sunday (April 17th) due to work-related exhaustion - I have to work two weeks plus the weekend, including 3 night shifts again - so I'm already pretty jaded. I am so sorry to delay yet another chapter and I hope you can indulge me ;____;** (God, I'm so tired... but it'll be good money and maybe a new pc/laptop) 
> 
> Woops, looks like Jenna's not going to be happy once she gets back to Set... 
> 
> Also I'm tormenting myself with bringing back SIR and not Feorn, why?! Oh, what a cruel universe... 
> 
> But let me just say that, as I literally smacked my forehead for solving my biggest problem with the story in the distant future, without first realizing it: that backpack is gonna be hella useful!!!! And important!!! WOW!!! *brain explodes*
> 
> I can't believe how fast I smacked this one out; and I even managed to visit my sister and watch The Biggest Loser with her (cuz she's addicted to that show and it's a motivator for her to jump on her treadmill while I'm sitting on the couch, silently destroying the keyboard of her laptop; my sister is awesome!)


	83. Leaving Home Base - Pt. 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Check out the C U R I O S I T Y Playlists on Deezer**  
>  ►Jenna: http://goo.gl/Rbqar5  
> ► The Horror of our Love: http://goo.gl/b95h06 (Thank you Helena! ♥)  
> ►CRIMSON EYES CODED MIND: http://goo.gl/A4yQNH  
> ►A Sky Full of Stars:http://goo.gl/qzbHW5 (Again, thx Helena!)

**\- 28 Leaving Home Base -**

**Part 7**

_  
Two hours later – Planet of the Resistance – Shooting range_

    “Again. And if you don’t keep that rifle up this time I’m gonna get over there and see to it that you do!” Tork barked for the umpteenth time and Jenna ground her teeth strained while trying to level the rifle again in her shaking hands. The Commander had forbidden her to switch her suit to arm support. “In a real fire fight or even an ambush nobody will give you spare time to first adjust your suit so you’re going to have to learn how to shoot without it!” He had explained his orders, causing some snickering all around the other fighters. Apparently her earlier success at the drill hadn’t been quite enough to win them over.

The rifle was already about to slip down again and she panted between her clenched teeth, grabbing the barrel tighter and forcing her cramped arms to lift the heavy weapon. Her aim with the pistol had greatly improved but since it was only really effective at a shorter range she would have to be able to use the bigger guns as well before Tork would take her along. And the way things were looking right now she feared that he would only take her on the mission with a gallon of Pakrit injected into her and without any guns at all. And to be honest, she had no intention to embarrass herself like that!

Jenna pressed her cheek against the rifle and peeked through the laser scope. The plastic-Irken at the other end of her lane seemed to sneer at her, but that was only because Rex, who had joined them after another hour, had shot her target from the lane right next to hers that he had immediately taken (who would’ve thought…). _His_ shots had all hit the target, leaving a grin out of bullet holes on the faceless Irken. Afterwards he had sneered at her himself because she nearly dropped her rifle out of start.

    “Jenna!” Tork jerked her from her thoughts and she gave a quiet growl. She liked Tork, a lot, but by now he had reached the annoyance level of a gym teacher who had it in for her, only ten times stricter and backed by a class that enjoyed the spectacle with maniacal spree… only ten times worse! She had it up to…

    “Jeez, human, why are you letting yourself down like this?” Rex whispered next to her and jammed a new magazine into his pulse shotgun. That was already the _fourth_ weapon he was trying out and to him it seemed to weigh near to nothing. Moreover he had already shot himself through three plastic-Irken and the fourth was also on the brink of simply turning into dust.

For a second Jenna was confused by his remark but when she shot a glimpse towards him she spotted that disdainful grin on his face again, paired with something close to sadism.

“Just give up, easier for you and everyone else in here, though we wouldn’t have anything to laugh about then.” He hissed at her and finished his target off with a single shot that sprayed the miserable remains of the Irken across the range. Jenna had to force herself to swallow anger and tears alike. No matter how often she told herself that Rex was just a bigmouth an bully and that she only had to ignore him she couldn’t help that his words were hurting her, especially because she was already doubting her abilities herself by now.    

Of course he had seen the reaction on her face and made a played pitiful sound. “Aww, are you gonna cry now?” he cooed and she froze.

_Yeah, are you going to cry now, huh?_

There it was again, that cold inner voice she had first experienced on the exploding space station, when she had been close to panicking. _Are you going to cry every time some stupid Vortian won’t be your_ friend _? Tsk! Just look at him… the way he’s acting up he’s gonna be one of the first to die out there. Unless you’d want to give him a leg up._

Jenna silently listened to her inner voice and kept her eyes on Rex, lost in thoughts. Something in her gaze must’ve unsettled him because he glanced over to her again and again and finally furrowed his brows. “Hey! The fuck are you lookin’ at?!” the Vortian hissed and she quickly looked away again, raising her rifle, but her thoughts wouldn’t stop right then.

_You could wait until he’s all alone… hm, no, they’d probably find his corpse too quickly._

Appalled she jumped from that mental image and involuntarily clenched her fingers. An ear-splitting shot whipped over the range and shredded the head of Rex’s fifth target.

A gruesome silence sank down over the entire shooting range and Jenna immediately realized that she had made a really big mistake, without having to even look at Rex, who tossed his rifle aside and crossed the few steps between them to grab the collar of her suit and pull her down to him.

    “Alright, greenhorn, you asked for it!” he spat and cracked the knuckles of his massy hands.

    “Hey, it was an accident!” she tried to defend herself but the narrowed yellow eyes only flashed at her combative.  
  
She saw the fist flying towards her and couldn’t react fast enough. The right side of her face disappeared in white hot pain and she must’ve had lost her consciousness  for a second because when she opened her eyes again she was lying on the ground and heard Tork’s absolutely livid shout. Then she felt something else, something that swallowed the cruel pain in her skull, replacing it with a raging fury instead. Something red, crimson even, that started at the crown of her head and spread down until it filled every last corner of her body.

She only had time to whisper a frantic “no” before the red something pushed her conscience back and took control over her body like a wrathful spirit.

Jenna saw herself rising from the ground and wanted to force her body to lie down again, she saw Rex and the other fighters recoiling from her and wanted to call out to them and tell them to run, and then she saw horrified how her own fist shot forward, hitting Rex under his chin with enough force to lift him off the ground. But her thirst for blood wasn’t stilled with that by a long run: her leg took a big swing and kicked the stumbling Vortian sideways in the ribs. Rex was hurled into the wall and slid down against it unconscious, blood running down his chin.

Tork shouted something and the other soldiers fled the hangar. The Commander stayed, bellowing orders into his Chronometer while he watched her warily and even took a step towards her when she went for the fallen Vortian again.

Trapped inside her own body Jenna could feel how she further lost control until her vision blurred. At the same time she started to hear voices, two of them, that didn’t belong to Tork or Rex. And they were _screaming_.

    _Please Jenna, make it stop!_  
      
    Please, it hurts!

She wanted to clasp her hands over her ears when she recognized the voices as Feorn’s and Ria’s. They were screaming in pain and begging her until she wanted to scream herself. The red haze before her eyes seemed to thicken around her, glowing from within like thousand little lights. And suddenly there was a third voice that clearly cut through the horrible screams even though it was speaking soft and quiet:

    _“You did this to them… it's your fault they died. It tortures you, doesn’t it? All your guilt, all your doubts… aahh, they make me see you clearer each day.”_

Panicked Jenna wanted to regain consciousness, wanted desperately to escape this prison inside her head and yet she couldn’t move. _“It’s no use struggling, little creature. You will come to me and become a part of me. Don’t you want to see them again? I could help you.”_ The voice beckoned. See them again? How was that supposed to work, they were dead!

The dark voice chuckled quietly. _“I have many abilities and even more power. Come to me… and you can save them.”_

The voice grew fainter and Jenna tried to hold it back, to follow it but the screams set in again and darkness took over her.

   
  


_A few hours later –_ Rebellion – _Brig_

Jenna was woken by upset voices, dully sinking in to her through the darkness. With a startled sound she sat upright and felt around her body when she still couldn’t see anything. But only after a few times blinking the blackness slowly lifted somewhat and she noticed a narrow band of light on the floor in front of her. Rattled Jenna let the palms of her hands run further over the cold metal of the stretcher she had come to on, trying to remember how she had ended up in… _here_. It certainly wasn’t the MedBay.

Before she had the chance to find her bearings the voices grew louder and now she could actually make out what they were saying, although she really had to prick up her ears.

    “You can’t do this!” Was that Set? Jenna tried to concentrate harder.

Another voice answered the first one with a cool reserve, a Vortian, but nobody she knew.

When she thought of a Vortian her stomach churned and she quickly turned her attention back on the unfamiliar voice before the sick feeling could overcome her.

    “On the contrary, Lieutenant Commander, it is my duty to do this!” She didn’t like that voice at all; that she was dead sure of.  
  
Slowly Jenna skidded along the stretcher and felt over the walls of her surroundings. The light was coming from a door but apparently it was the only source of light in here… she still wasn’t sure why she was here, wherever _here_ was, but an uneasy feeling crept up on her. She felt downright locked up.

    “Jenna is no _criminal_ , we need to get her to the MedBay and not lock her up!” a third voice blustered which Jenna could definitely identify as Car’s. Suddenly her heart skipped a beat. _Criminal_? What the hell was going on?!

Something stirred in her subconsciousness again, wanted to break through to the surface but she was still focusing on following the conversation.

    “Rest assured, Dr. Nemon already took care of her. She is not in immediate danger as he told me but she needs time and quiet to come to again.”

    “That is still no reason to lock her up!” Car hissed again but this time a very dangerous edge sharpened the already cold voice of the older Vortian.

    “It would seem you've already forgotten that she _killed_ somebody! She broke her oath by killing a member of the Resistance; to me that seems to be a quite _appropriate_ reason to have her _executed_! But unfortunately I’ll have to settle with seeing her behind bars until the council has made its decision.”

Jenna felt as if a giant hammer had knocked the air out of her body and she tried frantically to breath as a cold claw wrapped around her heart, slowly squeezing it out, and now this _something_ finally broke through to the surface. She had lost control again! Just like on the _Rebellion_ in Tork’s private quarters she had simply snapped from rage and the Pakrit metabolites inside her brain had taken control of her body. She only remembered that she had gone for Rex… and that Tork had been the only one with her!

She must’ve had made a choked sound because suddenly the door flung open and the intensity of the light glared her for a terrible moment before a massive silhouette blocked it out and she felt how Set’s arms pulled her into a tight embrace. Behind him the Vortian objected angrily until he was silenced by a very rude comment from Car.

Set hugged her closer to give her a quick kiss and to convince himself that she was really alright.

    “Don’t worry, I’ll get you out of here!” he hissed under his breath and only leaned back far enough to look her in the eyes. Jenna clung to him and looked up to him, eyes wide in terror.

    “S- Set, did I… did I really…”

Before she could voice any coherent sentence he had already placed a metal finger on her lips, quickly untangling from her since the unknown Vortian just entered. A mere glance was all it took to know that he would have loved to kill her on the spot.

    “Commander Vaka…” Set asked him with restrained anger in his voice, “I would like a moment alone with her.”

The Commander screwed his haggard face in disgust. That and the multiple deep wrinkles in his pale pink skin made him look like a vulture.

    “Yes, I didn’t need _that_ mental image. Unfortunately the protocol forbids it, and I fear I have to ask you to follow me outside now, Lieutenant Commander. No one but the first Commander and the Chief Medical Officer are allowed to talk to the convict as long as no verdict has been delivered. Anyone else who presumes to interfere in the investigations must be seen as an accessory and dealt with as such.” He explained with unmissable glee, tapping the tips of his boney fingers together. If he had said something like “excellent” or “Smithers, release the hounds!” Jenna probably would’ve lost it.  
  
Yet Vaka did nothing like that but kept staring at Set out of his ice-cold, yellow eyes.

    “V- Verdict?” Jenna breathed feebly and flinched when those eyes darted over to her and the disgusted expression turned into pure hatred.

    “Indeed. You killed one of our best soldiers… and my _son_. Believe me… I would do anything to bring you to your deserved justice, no matter what Tork might try to tell the council members… you are an uncontrollable hazard for the entire Resistance! If we hadn’t taken you in…” A brief flash of grief distorted his face but he just shook his head and straightened his shoulders. Beside her Set was noticeably on the verge of tearing the haggard Vortian apart but for now he still held back.

    “It wasn’t her fault!” he snarled but that only educed a tired smile from Vaka.

    “No? So who’s fault is it then? Yours, maybe? Or perhaps even the Tallest’s? Don’t ridicule yourself; there _will_ be a judgment and I will make sure that it is _just_.”

With this Vaka stormed out of the cell; the guards were already shifting from one foot to the other uneasily and Set gave them a reluctant nod before once again turning towards Jenna.

    “I don’t care what he says – I’m going to get you out of here and if I have to fight my way out of here like back on the _Massive_ … well, so be it.” He whispered pointedly in her language and gave her arms an assuring rub. But Jenna flinched away from him, shaking her head in terror.

    “Set… I just _killed_ someone! Someone innocent! If you go ahead and break me out, killing everybody who tries to stop us… we’d both be murderers! I… you’ve only just started to strengthen your position, the others were already seeing you as someone else than just the Irken invader you were, and I don’t want to shoot all of that down!” she sputtered with tearful voice, not really knowing what she was trying to say, wondering why she was worrying about that now of all times when obviously her life could be at stake!

Set seemed to realize that as well and he grabbed her arms again:

    “There’s nothing that could be of any less importance to me than my _position_ or how anybody _sees_ me, you silly human! You’re the only thing that means something to me! I won’t let them harm you, you know that!” He palmed over his antennae and sighed. “Why did you have to send SIR away, he would have…”

    “What?!” she interrupted him, flaring, “He would have _stopped_ me? Or killed Rex himself?” she spat, crossing her arms in front of her chest. Set furrowed his brows at her.

    “He would have _protected_ you!” he returned bewildered but before they could argue any more about the matter the guards had finally overcome their fear, entering the cell to usher him out.

Jenna stayed behind in turmoil and with her heart pounding in her chest. The only comfort was that the guards left the lights on this time when they locked the door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Augh!!! I'm so sorry for this long-ass delay and for not keeping you posted about why it happened ;_;  
> well, first I was just whacked from working for 12 days straight, including a 3 day night shift, and then family drama happened. That got me down so bad that I just had to take a step back from things and get my head back into the game...
> 
> anyway, I hope you like the chapter and I'll see you next week, pinky promise :-*


	84. The Hive

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Check out the C U R I O S I T Y Playlists on Deezer**  
>  ►Jenna: http://goo.gl/Rbqar5  
> ► The Horror of our Love: http://goo.gl/b95h06 (Thank you Helena! ♥)  
> ►CRIMSON EYES CODED MIND: http://goo.gl/A4yQNH  
> ►A Sky Full of Stars:http://goo.gl/qzbHW5 (Again, thx Helena!)

**\- 29 The Hive –**

_Aboard the_ Rebellion _– Course: Irk_

Set shot the cell door a last, worried glance and turned quickly away to head for the Command Bridge with angry strides. His thoughts were caught in an uproar and he was racking his brains about how he could possibly free Jenna _without_ being forced to kill anybody. Unfortunately he didn’t come up with anything regarding that department.

But Tork would know something, he just had to! Otherwise the ex-invader would see himself forced to simply bust Jenna out and ignore her complaints. Actually he would have preferred this solution; now that his Pak had stopped forcing him to obey his leader’s orders, he and Jenna could just stay anywhere they liked, without having anything, or anyone, trying to coerce him to return to his mission.

But then he furrowed his brows as he rode this train of thoughts further. Yes… _Jenna_ would coerce him. Or she would most likely even try to get back to the rebels on her own just to help them. Somehow he could understand her motives: Tork, Nemon, Car and the other crew members of the _Rebellion_ had by now become as familiar to her as her own family back on Earth and she would do anything in order to protect them. Just like she had protected Feorn and this Daniel-guy… and him, even though he hadn’t deserved it back then.

Set growled indignantly, frustrated that he hadn’t been able to do anything to protect _her_! If he had drilled the soldiers that morning… he wouldn’t have let this damned Vortian get even remotely near her! He had seen the giant bruise on her cheek where Rex’s fist had hit her and for a brief moment Set had found satisfaction in the fact that she had killed him for that. But then his worry for her had returned immediately. It couldn’t be a good sign that she had lost control again in such short time! What if the injected Pakrit had changed something in her after all?

Set decided to talk to Nemon right after Tork, no matter what Vaka might say, he wouldn’t let something like that keep him from doing everything in his power to help Jenna! And besides, he knew very well that the rebels needed them, both of them! Jenna, because she was the only one able to use his Pakrit effectively – or at all for that matter -, replacing a whole squad of soldiers, and him because he was the only one of them who had ever actually been on Irk. And even though he didn’t know every single corner, he knew the location their target was said to be and what would await them there.

He gave a proud snort and shook his head just as he stepped through the door to the Command Bridge, giving the two guards in front of it a curt nod. There was no reason for him to worry, they wouldn’t give up on Jenna, they should know by now that he would deny the Resistance any further service should something happen to her.

But when he saw Tork’s expression, who was standing grim-faced in front of the narrow observation window, his confidence dropped noticeably and he had trouble to keep back another growl at the mere sight.

    “I assume you have news then…” he went like a bull at a gate and stepped up next to his Commander, who gave a far less composed grunt back and turned around to concentrate his attention on the stellar map.

    “Hm, indeed… I just returned from _the_ defining council meeting… they want us to put her on ice until we’ve reached Irk.” Tork replied and Set’s jaw just fell open.

    “That’s insane! Jenna has never been put into cryostasis before, let alone for this long! It could kill her!” he added pointed and Tork nodded furiously.

    “I know! But that was the only thing Vaka would agree with, besides her execution and casting her out. What we, sadly, will have to do once all of this is over... casting her out I mean.” He added sad and clenched his hands into tight fists.

In this regard Set was completely indifferent about how the council had decided; if everything would go well, and he meant literally _everything_ , he would just grab Jenna without much ado and leave the rebels, to fulfil her wish of a house on a tropical planet with lots of water around.

_And then we live peacefully together until we’re old and grumpy…_

Tork continued and jerked him from his thoughts:

    “What frustrates me even more is the fact that this proposal didn’t even come from Vaka himself, but our _illustrious_ guest!” At that he moved his hand in the gesture typical for Vortians whenever they assigned something with quotation marks. Set cocked a brow.

   “Guest?” But he realized quickly that Tork could only mean one entity with that. “The Meekrob is on this ship?!” he hissed as soon as he had counted two and two together and the Vortian nodded.

    “Yep. Showed up right after we left the planet and preemptively reserved himself one of the officer’s quarters. At first I was just as reverent as everyone else but when he just appeared”, again with the air-quotations, “ out of thin air at the council meeting, unsolicited as well, proposing that we put Jenna into cryostasis so that she won’t be able to _cause any more damage_ … I would have loved to just squash that lightning bug with my bare…” he sighed tired and let his already raised hand fall down powerless to wipe over his face.

Set was staggered that the first Commander was showing his exhaustion this openly for all to see and he would have cleared his throat to remind him but the hardened Vortian already straightened himself again and shook his head as if to shake off this dash of weakness.

“You better go see Nemon now. The Meekrob should be with him this very moment and he has some alarming insights, which he apparently only remembered _after_ Jenna killed Rex. It’s about the metabolites in her brain. Maybe you can come up with something, I for one don’t want anything to do with those things for a while now… two near-death experiences like that are three too many.” He commented dryly and Set nodded with a small, respectful bow before he turned on his heel and left the bridge.

On his way to the MedBay he played with the thought of paying Jenna another visit, just to make sure that she was _really_ alright, when he almost bumped into Car who turned around the corner to the MedBay. She looked up to him in start, taking a step back and quickly hiding something behind her back. The Irken pricked up his antennae and looked down on her, slightly confused.

    “So where are you going in such a hurry?” he asked and then looked over his shoulder into the next hallway, where he had wanted to go himself just a second ago. Then he grinned. “Probably to bust out Jenna, hm?”

Car gave him an equally devious grin and brought forth what she had been trying to hide behind her back. It was indeed an electromagnetic lock pick for the cell doors, probably invented by Trook himself. Set took it, still grinning, and crushed it in his hand. Car opened her mouth in outrage and looked like she was about to jump in his face.

    “What the hell, you asshole?! I thought you’re on her side!” she yelled and kicked at him. Set dodged nimbly and threw the broken pieces carelessly over his shoulder while his gaze darkened and he bent down to her to look her in the eyes.

    “I am. The only one apparently. And that’s why I won’t let you get her into any more trouble by trying to break her out so clumsily, got it?” he snarled under his breath and noticed the brief flash of fear in her eyes before she crossed her arms in front of her flat chest and bared her teeth at him.

    “Whatever, you’re not the boss of me! Next time I won’t be so stupid as to trust you!”

Set stood upright again and couldn’t help a smug smile from curling his lips.

    “Well, I am Lieutenant Commander on this ship after all, so, technically, I _am_ your boss, even before Nemon”

But when he looked in her angry, stubborn face he realized that Car probably felt just as desperate as he did, after all she also hadn’t been able to help Jenna, why he sighed, rubbing sheepishly over his antennae. “Listen, if you really want to help her then talk to her, so that she isn’t all alone in that cell. And try to find out what the other council members think of that plan, someone has to be against it! And maybe you’ll ask our telepathic _friend_ if he can’t help Jenna somehow…. Since his master is here he can’t be far.” He proposed a little more diplomatic and astonishingly enough Car’s mistrustful face relaxed and she disappeared around the next corner without another word.

Set glanced after her, lost in thoughts, and kept following the hallway to the MedBay. Even from outside he saw a blue, superlunary glow seeping through the small windows in the door and felt a shiver running down his spine all the way to his Pak, which had started to vibrate slightly. Stunned by this distinct reaction he stopped and tried to listen to his body. But before he could detect anything odd or call up the interface of his Pak the door opened and Nemon asked him in.

    “Set, Tork sends you, I assume. Come in.”

He followed the Ilenian to the back part of the vacant station and here the glow’s intensity grew even stronger, causing the vibrations in his Pak to increase as well. A little unsettled he approached the being whose appearance could only be described as radiant.

The Meekrob was floating a good meter above the ground, effortlessly, as if there was no gravity in this room. Their body, if a being of pure energy could even be considered _corporeal_ , was currently in the shape of a kite-like, segmented insect, with multiple pairs of long antennae and feelers, flowing around it like ribbons caught in a breeze. At its edges their body was completely translucent but the closer you got to their dichotomous center the stronger the light it emitted until it was too painful to look for much longer.

When Set leveled his gaze at the two big eyes, his Pak gave off a downright tremor and he could feel the Meekrob’s conscience creeping into his head, or rather it circled his own mind like an intelligent and wary predator, who kept his distance for his prey was likely to attack as well.

He was overcome by the sudden, impulsive urge to kill this being, but he barely had suppressed this impulse when a bright ringing chimed from all around and the Meekrob chuckled in his head.

    _“I see that your enmity for our kind lies even deeper enrooted inside you than our resentment towards your species, invader Set. It doesn’t surprise me, we’ve postulated long ago that the_ Hive _embedded_ _this hostility for us into your very DNA; therefore your reaction shall be forgiven._ ” The Meekrob said generously and Set automatically furrowed his brows at them.

    “ _Ex_ \- invader.” He corrected the being and came straight to the point. “Why do you want to put Jenna into cryostasis? It could kill her! And here I thought you’ve had put so much hope in her!”

Reliat, who was standing right next to the Meekrob, awestricken, gave him a shocked look and even Nemon quirked his eyebrows in surprise but the spectral alien didn’t let it show if his uncouth manners had offended them in any way. But they stayed silent for a moment in which they scanned Set’s conscience further before answering him.

    _“You worry for the human… though I’m wondering whether your concern solely originates from your natural urges or…”_

Even before the Meekrob could finish sending the sentence Set had already planted himself menacingly before them and was baring his teeth in barely controlled anger.

    “Let me just put one thing straight: Jenna means everything to me! What she took upon herself for me, from the very beginning, I can never give her back but I will fucking try to give it my all, understood? And that’s all you need to know!” he hissed furious and ignored the warning signal his Pak sent him when he got this close to the Meekrob.

But they stayed unimpressed by his threatening display and only gave off a quiet chime.

    _“Fascinating… I never would’ve imagined that the decoding would achieve such a vast change in your kind.”_ They mused thoughtfully. But then Set noticed something odd.

    “Why are you actually referring to yourself in first person? I thought Jenna told me that you only talked as “we” through the Zar'tak.” He wanted to know and this time he saw the way Reliat flinched.

    “Set, a little more respect!” The younger Ilenian demanded scandalized but the Irken only shot him an angry glare that made him pipe down with a nervous gulp.

The Meekrob however overlooked his doubtful manners once again.

    _“Our servants are the gate to our species’ shared conscience which can spread across the entire galaxy and beyond through the Zar'taks. As soon as one of us takes control of them the others witness as well what the Zar'tak sees and hears, connecting us from all around into one single mind. Now I’m speaking to you as an individual, for the rest of my people decided that the responsibility of disclosing our most secret insights on the_ Hive _should only be put on one of us.”_ They explained and seemed to sink down in shame. Set snapped his fingers.

    “ _Right_ , you still haven’t answered my question,” he reminded the being and crossed his arms in front of his chest, his metal arm whirring quietly, “so? Why do you want to put Jenna in so much danger although she's so valuable to the cause?”

The Meekrob floated over to Nemon’s desk and chimed brightly. Suddenly a small shockwave shook the room, like back in the MedBay on the rebel planet. At another chime one of the shadows next to the many drawers thickened and took on the shape of a tall, four-armed creature with a triangular head and five glowing eyes. The Zar'tak slowly lifted his head and flinched hard when he spotted Set but after a short ring of his sovereign he relaxed again and bowed deeply before the Meekrob.

A silent exchange happened between them, then the Zar'tak’s eyes flared up in their eerie glow and from his memory he conjured up Reliat’s notes, projecting them into the room.

    “He only had to say something…” Reliat muttered dashed.

The Meekrob turned around to them again.

    _“What you thought to be mere metabolites that accumulated in Jenna’s brain are in truth synthetic transmitters on a molecular level. During our own experiments we found out that Irken soldiers and especially invaders have them in their Pakrit, thus also in their blood. We called them Scouts. As soon as another life form kills an invader and feeds of their flesh those transmitters enter the life form’s digestive system where they get metabolized and finally activated. If the life form is evolved enough, the Scouts eventually find their way into its blood stream and invade the brain or the equivalent neural control organ. We tested this process on multiple different life forms, also on the early humans, but none of them showed any particular reaction to the Scouts, only that our test subjects would perish when they absorbed too much Pakrit or Irken blood, since the accumulated Scouts eventually damaged the neural cells with their electromagnetic pulses.”_

Reliat blinked attentively and then raised a hand, as if to ask for permission to speak, before he blurted out anyway:

    “Yes, the Zar'tak told us before that he had sensed those electromagnetic waves emitting from Jenna.”

His remark seemed to aggrieve the Meekrob a little because they sank down a good foot again and cast their servant a glimpse.

    _“It’s true. We felt it when the Scouts built up in her brain, already when she took the invader’s Pakrit back then, but since we never experienced any effects in humans we deemed it irrelevant. A grievous mistake as it turned out.”_ They admitted.

Now Nemon joined in with the discussion, his four brown eyes narrowed in concentration.

    “You said that only invaders and soldiers carry those Scouts inside them. Would this possibly explain why Jenna didn’t suffer any side effects after emptying the entire Pak of the scientist who sacrificed herself for her? At that time the Tallest had degraded her into a drone.” He explained and the Meekrob gave a ring in agreement.

    _“Absolutely, yes. Lower Irkens don’t have the Scouts, it really seems as though they’re only given to those who have the highest risk of getting killed and eaten.”_ He gave the Zar'tak a sign and suddenly the hologram changed until it had the shape of an insect-like alien, walking on its hind legs, scrambling and jumping through the air with a hefty knife in its claw and a chitin helmet on its ugly head.

Set immediately gave a hiss when he recognized the creature and his fingers twitched, ready to fight it, what made the Zar'tak tremble nervously.

    _“Then we found the species that your kind calls Prerk. And when we tested the Pakrit and the Scouts on them we noticed something astonishing: Already after the first admission the test subjects fell into a trance-like state and spoke about visions of a great eye or other objects. They blustered into this trance until they finally lost all control and attacked us and their own kind as well, and had to be put down. Unfortunately the remaining Prerk realized right away that we were abducting members of their species for tests and disappeared into the depths of space, untraceable for us so that we couldn’t perform any further tests on them. I wouldn’t have considered it possible for the current humans to show a similar reaction to the Pakrit and especially the Scouts. And sadly I only realized it after Jenna killed that unfortunate Vortian in her uncontrollable rage.”_

Set reigned himself in to not comment on that and just let his fingers drum impatiently on his metallic forearm.

    “That still is no reason for me to put her into cryo… I already managed to keep her from losing control once, and I'm sure I would be able to do it again if need be, so what are you getting at?” he asked teeth-gnashing and the Meekrob turned their attention to him again.

    _“The_ Hive _didn’t infuse your Pakrit with those Scouts without a reason, they are_ supposed _to get absorbed by other life forms, but for what exact purpose remains uncertain! If Jenna continues to live with those transmitters in her brain we can only speculate what it could do to her and how far the electromagnetic pulses will damage her! My servant told me that Jenna was able to send her dreams in her  sleep on the same frequency as his telepathy, something a being on her evolutional level should not be able to, at least not without direct Pakrit infusion. Maybe they act as a communicator for the_ Hive _, a marker that tags life forms that could be dangerous for it; then it would probably get warned should we get close enough to Irk for Jenna’s dreams to get inside its range. Which is why she has to stay unconscious until our arrival, for her own protection! And cryostasis would at the same time render the scouts ineffective, at least as long as she stays in cold sleep. It is the only way to prevent her from falling into the_ Hive _’s hands and the Resistance’s assault from losing its element of surprise!”_

Set’s metal fingers had dug into his arm and he shot Nemon an inquiring glare but the Ilenian only shook his head.

    “It really seems to be the only thing we can do, Set.” He said quietly and opened his arms helplessly.

For a moment Set chewed on his lower lip and pondered whether he should stab the Meekrob with his spider legs now after all.

Then he just turned around and stomped to the door.

    “Knock yourself out, but I’ll talk to her first.” 

 

* * *

 

Very very VERY rough Meekrob sketch I did for this chapter but by far not the finished version! (adds that to current to-do-list, sobbing)

While I really liked the show's original design for them I thought they didn't seem alien enough to work for my universe

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ooooh boi, here we go boys and gurls I take one Jenna on the rocks, what are y'all having? I'm buying $-$  
> AAAh my birthday is in 12 days so I gotta fricking plan ahead with the uploads to not get myself in a pinch again~  
> Hope you had a nice weekend!!


	85. The Hive - Pt. 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Check out the C U R I O S I T Y Playlists on Deezer**  
>  ►Jenna: http://goo.gl/Rbqar5  
> ► The Horror of our Love: http://goo.gl/b95h06 (Thank you Helena! ♥)  
> ►CRIMSON EYES CODED MIND: http://goo.gl/A4yQNH  
> ►A Sky Full of Stars:http://goo.gl/qzbHW5 (Again, thx Helena!)

###  **\- 29 The Hive –**

**Part 2**

_A few moments later - Jenna's Cell -_ Rebellion 

  
  
It was cold in her cell but Jenna was sweating anyway. Every time she thought about what Vaka had said she felt another light, cold sweat  forming in her back and tried frantically to distract her mind with something else rather than apprehending what might await her.

She all but screamed out of relief when she heard Car’s voice from outside, who ordered the guard to kindly step off and let her talk to her friend or her father would hear of this!

The guard only sighed annoyed and not a second later the heavy cell door opened just wide enough for Car to slip through and immediately fling her arms around Jenna’s neck. The human’s throat slipped a choked up sound as she clung to the Vortian.

    “Do you know anything new? Oh god, Car, I’m going crazy in here!” Jenna breathed and angrily blinked away the tears trying to well up in her eyes. Car shook her head at her shoulder.

    “They didn’t want to tell me anything, even my own father! I’m sorry, I wanted to bring you a lock pick but your stupid _Irken_ copped me and destroyed it! Now I’ll probably have to work the damn thing off in my uncle’s workshop.” She replied and parted from Jenna. Her vermilion eyes spoke volumes how upset and worried she really was and her hand trembled when she palmed over Jenna’s back.

She gave her a crooked smile.

    “Sorry about your lock pick, but I don’t think I would’ve used it anyway. The fact that I still got my suit on me shows me that the Resistance apparently has _some_ faith left in me and I don’t want to abuse that trust… moreover I wouldn’t get far on my own and I refuse to hurt anyone else just to flee like a coward.” She admitted and smiled apologetically at Car who was screwing up her face.

    “You’re way too loyal towards them. But I suppose I really could’ve brought you something more useful instead, huh?”

Jenna thought about her iPod and the meagre stash of cigarettes, longing, both things that would’ve made her time in this cell a lot easier. Her hand slipped under her top’s collar and she pulled out the necklace with the Dilamite crystal, to rub it between her fingers; at least she still had this. Car whistled through her teeth in awe.

    “ _Wow_. I’m just gonna go ahead and say that Set gave you that? _Shit_ , that guy really has been stinking rich!”

Envious she eyed the crystal and her eyes widened in reverence as it drank up the energy from Jenna and started glowing faintly. Jenna smiled, remembering how Set had given her the necklace, still so very high from their escape back then.

    “He brought it back from his mission, back on the _Massive_ , after we’d escaped… just like that… I was so relieved, convinced that now everything would be better.” She sighed and pressed the stone to her chest. “I can’t believe all of this happened in such short time. Car, can you promise me something?” she asked and the Vortian pushed her back at arms’ length, an unyielding expression on her face.

    “No, forget it, I won’t take your _remains_ back to Earth, because none of us will ever let anything happen to you! And I won’t promise you to take care of your Irken for you, for the same reason, but also because I’m still scared as hell of him and I don't understand how in the world you keep surviving having sex with him!”

Jenna snickered and grabbed Car’s hands on her shoulders.

    “Don’t worry, _not_ what I was going to say at all. Just promise me that you and Reliat will try it one more time, all right?” She squeezed her hands despite the grimace that followed her request. “You two are just too stressed out at the moment with everything that’s been happening but please don’t let that tear you apart! I know you weren’t together just to rebel against your father, right?” she said quietly and remembered what she had read in Reliat’s thoughts when she was trying out the Pakrit. “I know at first hand that he was still always thinking about you and the first time you two met, despite all his excitement about the Pakrit and the Meekrob and the fight on the _Massive_.” She confessed and Car gave her a doubtful glare and a raised eyebrow.

    “Did he try to tell you that?” she asked scornful but blinked in surprise when Jenna shook her head solemnly.

    “No, I read this mind when we were running the tests on me with the injected Pakrit. He always pictured how proud you would be of him for contributing to ending this war and stopping the Empire with his notes and insights on the Pakrit. And then you could finally…”

She quickly hushed; it seemed wrong to Jenna to tell Car what else Reliat had thought. But the Vortian clinched her grip around her shoulders and stared at her.

    “What? What could we finally do?” she pressed on. Jenna sighed and now placed her hands on Car’s shoulders to bring her mouth close to her ear and whisper:

    “Reliat wants to marry you. As I understood it after Vortian tradition but I don’t really know what he meant with that.”

At first Car had only been speechless but the last sentence made her cheeks flush and she couldn’t suppress a smile. Jenna was stunned how pretty Car looked when she was genuinely smiling like that and she couldn’t help but smile too, despite the fact that they were both standing inside a cell.

    “That’s what Rel thought about? Oh wow… I mean we’ve already _joked_ about it… well, actually it was only me who did the joking…”   
  
She hugged Jenna closely and kissed her on the cheek. “Okay, promise.” She vowed solemnly. Jenna nodded contented before it knocked lightly against the door and the Vortian femme furrowed her brows. “I have to go. But I’m sure they’ll let you out soon enough; they’d be stupid to punish you with anything other than destroying a few more Irken space stations.”

With this Car left and Jenna stayed behind, alone with her thoughts again. She had just settled down on the stretcher, trying to figure out what to say should they drag her in front of a judge and jury, when she heard voices in the hallway again. Her heart did an elated but also nervous jump when she recognized Set, telling the guard quite clearly that he was here on Tork’s orders. This time the guard didn’t dare to sigh annoyed but opened the door at once.

Set had to stoop to step through the door and once it had barely closed Jenna threw herself against him and wrapped her arms around his waist. The Irken placed his hands on her shoulders with a quiet chirp, pulling her closer. Then he bent down and picked her up to kiss her and nuzzle his face against the crook of her neck. They stayed like this for a while; Set greedily took in her smell and gently nibbled at her skin until Jenna exhaled shakily, crossing her hands over his nape.

    “What did Tork say?” she asked timid and felt how he tensed up beneath her.

Set huffed a tired sigh and sat down on the pallet with her in his arms, gently combing her hair with his fingers and tucking one strand neatly behind her ear.

    “They want to put you into Cryostasis, a cold sleep, until we’ve reached Irk.” He started with restrained ire in his voice. Jenna nervously chuted around on his lap. Cryostasis didn’t necessarily sound so bad at first but Set’s upset state did unsettle her however.

    “And… for how long, do you think, will I be out?” she finally pressed on and the Irken shook his head.

    “If we don’t run into any complications I’d say fifteen cycles, maybe seventeen.” He replied and she swallowed shocked. 15 days without being conscious in cold sleep, not knowing what was going on around her? It sounded like putting her in a coma.

    “And that’s all? I would have expected a worse punishment.” She said brave, anyway, also to take part of Set’s worry for her away. But he was still meeting her gaze with anger in his eyes.

    “Not quite. Guess who made this stupid suggestion!”

Before she could even think about it he threw one hand in the air and waved it at the door. “Your great new pal, the Meekrob! Snuck on board ever so boldly and now think they can order everyone around just because they’re – what? – _old_?!” he hissed outraged.

Jenna’s eyes widened. The Meekrob was here? So why hadn’t they sought her out in here, when she was supposed to be the last hope of their kind?

There was something Set was still not telling her and she scrutinized him. He avoided her glare until she took the metal hand resting on her thigh, interlocking her fingers with the three titan digits as if it was really nothing more than just his hand.

    “What else?” she asked quietly and he raised his upper lip into a slight snarl. Then he suddenly wrapped both his arms around her again, cupping the back of her head with one hand to pull her as close to his body as possible.

    “Do you remember when I wanted to invent the Brain Bugs? Small, synthetic cells that were supposed to invade the brains of your species and would have turned all of humanity into mindless slaves on a single command from me?” he hissed under his breath and she nodded, startled why he would bring this up again. “Well… as it turned out, my Pakrit has something very similar already inside it; what Nemon assumed to be metabolites are in reality tiny, synthetic molecules. The Meekrob knew about those things; they seem to be some sort of transmitter, designed to enter alien life forms’ brains, causing you to send your dreams when you’re sleeping... and probably to make you lose control. That’s why they want to put you into cryo, out of fear that those signals might warn the _Hive_ … and that you’ll possibly… get harmed through them if they stay active for any longer.”

Jenna remembered the Zar'tak telling her that he had been able to receive her dreams and when she thought of the incorporeal voice she had heard shortly before losing her consciousness she shivered in his arms. In her memory there were only a few snatches of what had happened before the red fog had taken control over her body; Rex, who was hurled through the hall by her kick and stayed bleeding on the floor, Tork who yelled at the other rebels to get to safety, the wary, nervous glare as he called the security forces over his Chronometer. And then the screams.

She looked past Set’s arm towards the door, where the guard was standing outside, probably asking himself when the human would go crazy again and kill him up next.

    “What happened inside that hangar, Set? How… how did I…” she muttered faltering and got shut up by a long kiss. Jenna writhed in Set’s embrace until she was able to part from him, even though he gave a low hiss at that. “I have to know! What did I do that Vaka is so hell bent on executing me!?” Before her inner eye she already saw a mangled, bloodless corpse, with torn limbs and guards trying to overpower her. Had she perhaps hurt even more people in the process?

Set hissed reluctant and tried again to kiss her to stop her from talking, even going so far as to slip one hand under her top, groping her breast but she put both her hands over his mouth and shoved him away with all her force, getting a few inches of space, until the crimson eyes stopped flashing at her like that and he let up on her with a sigh.

    “I had just started the pilots’ training when I heard Tork’s distress call over the Chronometer. We… established an own code for that after your first… attack back on the _Rebellion_ so we would know immediately what was going on, and what to do in case of another seizure. Which means to evacuate all civilians within your immediate radius and detain you until the Pakrit burns itself out. Fortunately I was right on the other side of the hangar so I was there quicker than you could attack Tork.” Set stopped and rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. “I used SIR to distract you when you tried to attack me… and you ripped off his arm, that’s why he’s currently in Trook’s workshop. After that I had to tackle you down pretty hard and keep you pinned to the ground so you’d stop struggling… are you sure you’re alright?” he asked worried and she nodded quietly, too anxious to know what had happened to Rex.

Set huffed relieved before his expression turned unsmiling again. “The Vortian you attacked… uhm… it was very bloody, you wreaked all you aggression on him, why you didn’t went for Tork immediately. Which was good, otherwise he would have been forced to shoot you.” He added quickly when all color left her face and her hand shot up to clasp over her mouth.

    “Oh god,” she gasped out choked, “Vaka was right, I am a hazard for the Resistance!”

Set growled and took her face in his hands so she had to look up to him again.

    “Don’t say that! Don’t you say that ever again! You’re not a hazard, not as long as I’m with you!”

But she shook her head.

    “Set, you’ve seen yourself what it takes to make me lose control! Every time something annoys me or gets me angry it can happen, and the last times were so close to each other… what if you’re too far away the next time? What if it happens in the MedBay next and I hurt Nemon or Car or a patient?!” Jenna’s mind raced back to little Tenan, who she had brought to this world herself, and felt a sudden vertigo at the thought of how easily she could have hurt him. Her heart was pounding painfully in her chest and she didn’t notice that she had started to hyperventilate, her palms covered in cold sweat.

Suddenly Set’s hands wrapped around her neck on both sides and squeezed slowly. Startled she gasped for air and looked at him with big eyes, completely torn from her panic attack. The crimson, pupilless eyes met hers with an unyielding glare and he let his thumbs gently run over her throat, while his hands squeezed even tighter.

It didn’t hurt, nor was it enough to really take her breath away, but that touch alone, the certainty that he could have absolute control over something as natural as her breath at a moment’s notice, gave her a sudden feeling of safety and grounding that brought her back and calmed her frantically pounding heart. She didn’t need to have control herself when he could have it anytime.

Jenna exhaled slowly and relaxed under his big hands, the cool left one, silently whirring and clicking, and the warmer one on the right.

    “See? As long as I’m with you, you will never lose control again. And I won’t leave you out of sight for one second from now on.” Set kissed her reassuringly on her head and chirred. “If only I had known about this sooner… I would’ve never let you drink my Pakrit!”

    “And then you would’ve died and I would’ve followed you shortly after that.” She retorted quietly and raised her head to kiss him. “It’s alright this way, Set. I’ll let them put me into Cryostasis and once we reach Irk we’ll both get out there and kick some ass, okay?”

That made him smile.

    “I can’t wait to. But you should prepare yourself that I’m going to _fuck_ you right after you wake up, because fifteen cycles without you are going to be very, _very_ hard for me…” he growled under his breath and Jenna snorted derisively.

    “Fine by me, but please, be so good and take me somewhere we can be for ourselves first, I don’t think you will be the only one in the room when I get woken up.”

The Irken rolled his eyes with another grumbling.

    “If I have to…”            

 

The next day Jenna was already wide awake when Tork came into her cell with two more guards to take her to the MedBay, where Nemon and Reliat would put her into Cryostasis. She had barely slept all night, tossing and turning on her pallet, once again tormented by nightmares and voices inside her head, and she was almost glad that those agonies would stop for a while now and she wouldn’t have to worry about killing somebody just because they had looked at her the wrong way.

Of course Set was with them as well and he hissed outraged when the guards nervously asked if they should put Jenna in chains, and even Tork didn’t want to hear anything about that.

The way to the MedBay turned out to be more difficult than they had expected: all around they met rebels who had gathered in the other hallways to silently watch the happenings, staring at Jenna with mixed feelings. On many faces she saw anger and fear, both immediate results at Rex’s death through her, but a major part of them seemed more upset that her heroine was supposed to simply get frozen away and multiple times Jenna heard muttered concerns about what they should do in case of an attack when Jenna was still in cold sleep.

Fortunately Set’s mere presence kept anyone from disrupting the procession, be it to execute Jenna themselves or to free her, and for the first time she was actually glad that he was hovering over her so jealously.

When they arrived at the MedBay the mass of aliens had even thickened and the two guards had to push some of the more curious ones away so they could get through to the door, from which came an unearthly blue light that Set commented with a suppressed hiss, rolling his shoulders. Jenna stopped all of a sudden in front of the door, her eyes opened widely. An unexplainable fear had suddenly taken over her the second she had seen the blue light and now everything inside her was screaming to turn around and run away, just away from the creature that was waiting behind that door.

Confused she tried to fight this feeling, forcing herself to take another step towards the door, whereat she got punished by a gruesome headache that made her squint her eyes and holding her head with one hand, groaning in pain.

The rebels around her mumbled nervously and even the two guards took a step away from her. Tork grabbed her shoulder.

    “Hey, kid, you alright?” he asked worried and she shook her head.

    “I- I don’t know… I… _something_ inside me doesn’t want to go in there!” she panted out between clenched teeth and she felt for Set’s hand, looking for something to hold onto. The Irken promptly picked her up in his arms and stepped through the door although she started shaking violently.

    “Ssshh, it’s alright, I feel the same way. Well, something in my _Pak_ refuses to get too close to the Meekrob.” He hummed reassuring while he carried her through the MedBay. “I think it’s those Scouts. They sense that the Meekrob is a threat to them.”

His explanation didn’t really make the whole situation any better for her but at least now she didn’t feel like she was losing her mind anymore.

Jenna raised her eyes and forced herself to look straight ahead; Nemon and Reliat were already busy with preparing a big, white pod in the back area of the MedBay. Its glass lid was standing wide open and reminded her involuntarily of Snow White’s glass coffin. White, cold mist virtually poured out of the pod onto the floor and reflected the blue light the Meekrob was emitting. When Jenna’s gaze wandered over to them her eyes grew big in awe and suddenly the feeling of pure fear fell from her.

The Meekrob was floating effortlessly through the air towards her, slowly and gracefully, the glowing feelers and shimmering tentacles waving lazily in a breeze that didn’t exist, and the giant eyes were resting unwavering on her face. She felt how their consciousness enveloped her own, touching it like a calming embrace and out of the blue tears were streaming down her face. Something inside her, in her very DNA recognized this feeling, this mental touch and reacted to it without her being able to explain it.

    _“Hello, Jenna.”_ The Meekrob greeted her softly und reached out a see through tentacle to wipe a tear from her cheek. For the first time Set didn’t utter any protest even though the being was this close to her. _“I’ve waited a long time to meet you… although none of us would have ever expected to meet you in this form; the last hope for this galaxy and all the others.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next Sunday it's gonna be a Jenna sundae ayyyy 8D   
> hnnngr there's gonna be so much good stuff in the next chapter, you won't belieeeve it!
> 
> Kinda late because my sister's birthday was yesterday and we got drunk |'D
> 
> hope you guys had a super aweseome weekend!! See you next Sunday!


	86. The Hive - Pt. 3

###  **\- 29 The Hive –**

**Part 3**  
  
  
Although she was still completely enthralled by the Meekrob's appearance Jenna screwed up her face, skeptic, at their portentous words.

    "The last hope for this galaxy, really? Don't you think that's a bit overblown? Before I took the Pakrit you didn't even know that I existed…" she muttered uncomfortably and felt spontaneously reminded of what Nemon had told her after they had brought little Tenan to this world; that the crew members saw her as some sort of omen, a fortunate sign. It really stuck in her craw to be seen and treated as something _fateful_. Her experiences had convinced her that the fate of the galaxy was solely decided by weird coincidences, accidents and, above all, the choices of _everyone_ in it, not just the good guys. She had never believed in something like a god or destiny. That _she,_ out of all beings in the galaxy, was now ascribed so much importance to, being just a mere human who barely escaped her own death… it just sounded too stupid.

The Meekrob gave a soft chime.

    _"I feel doubt inside you… and fear. Are you sure that you're ready to fight for your freedom and that of the rebels, no matter what might be necessary?"_  they asked probing and Jenna nodded fiercely in Set's arms, who was starting to frown now after all since the being was still so close to her.

    "I _am_ ready! I just wish we'd already be there to get it over with and I wouldn't have to be put into cold-sleep first." She retorted with emphasis and tried to writhe out of Set's arms to go the pod out of her own strength. After a short moment of reluctance Set finally decided to put her down, yet he stayed close behind as she walked with steady steps towards Nemon and Reliat who were already standing next to the cryostasis-pod, looking at her with stern expressions.

Suddenly there was a loud noise coming from the door and before Jenna had the chance to turn around Car crashed into her and almost swept her off her feet when she wrapped both her arms around her neck to hug her stormily.

    "No, they can't freeze you, not before I didn't see you off!" the Vortian called out vociferously and cast Reliat a crushing glare over Jenna's shoulder. "You knew of this, admit it!" she hissed and even though Jenna couldn't see Reliat she could well imagine that he was just raising his hands helplessly.

    "It's alright, Car, I'm glad you're here." Jenna said with a smile and hugged the Vortian closer to her, who apparently didn't feel bothered be the unearthly chiming coming off the Meekrob or Nemon's impatient cough; Jenna loved her for that.

But then she slowly parted from the embrace and walked up to the two Ilenians to finally get this whole thing over with. Set followed her on her heel and she noticed his quiet, concerned chirp in her back.

Nemon hugged her too when she stopped before him and Reliat was looking so miserable that she clasped him in her arms as well. After all the poor guy wasn't to blame that his perceptions, with which he had only hoped to help end this war, had led to all of this. The Chief Medical Officer handed her a thin, white gown and asked her to change since the fluid used to freeze her might leave stains on her clothes. A little worried that she now had to part with her suit after all, Jenna complied and quickly changed into the gown behind one of the dressing screens. Then she carefully sat down with her legs crossed inside the open capsule. It reminded her of the big, mobile MedBay she had spent a few hours inside after the tech had beaten her up, with the difference that this pod was much more cushioned.

Nemon hunkered down on the floor next to her and gently took her hand into his, his four brown eyes intently meeting her gaze.

    "The procedure might appear a bit frightening to you, but I promise you that nothing bad will happen to you." He started of and had Reliat hand him one of the big syringes they had already prepared on a tray. Jenna gulped when she saw that thing from up close. That really was a very, _very_ big syringe!

She saw the way Set laid back his antennae and she smiled; she knew about his unease towards needles.

The insertion was awfully painful but she bit down on her teeth and clenched her hands into fists to just don't give a sound, her friends already had a bad conscience! But when Nemon pulled the trigger and the white liquid was shot into her arm with high pressure she groaned all the same. The stuff felt as doughy as gruel and just as pleasant to be injected with.

Jenna inspected the puncture as soon as the needle was out of her arm again and she screwed her face: The stuff had left a downright knoll under her skin. Nemon placed his palm on her neck and her arm and closed his eyes in concentration, while telling Reliat her vitals which he immediately entered into the machine the pod was connected to.

Suddenly Jenna felt a massive wave of cold originating from her left arm and spreading across her entire body until even her groin felt so cold she got goose bumps down under and she wrapped her arms around her chest, shivering violently. When she exhaled shakily a small white cloud escaped her trembling lips.

    "What I injected you with right now is a cocktail of glycerin, different amino acids and pure oxygen, but only the Meekrob know the full recipe since they taught us this technology. It will spread through your cells, infusing them, and thus preventing them to get damaged by crystals that would form upon the freezing process. However, with the recent improvements in cryotechnology, using this primer has become rather obsolete… but I want to play it safe with you. You've never been in cryostasis, or any human for all we know, and I would never forgive myself if something happened to you… so…"

Jenna placed her hand on his arm, what made him flinch from the cold touch, and smiled.

    "It's okay, N-Nemon, thank y-you - oh god is that c- _cold_!" she panted. The Ilenian brushed over her head and asked her to lay down.

    "Then I don't want to keep you in suspense any longer. Alright, listen: the lid will close in a few seconds and the pod will fill up with a liquid. You don't have to be afraid, you can safely breathe this substance without any trouble, but it will probably feel a bit uncomfortable for you since I don't assume you have something like that on your planet."

Though Jenna had indeed already heard of something like a breathable liquid before: fluorinated hydrocarbons which, in their liquid form, could be enriched with enough oxygen to make the solution actually breathable by animals even in full submersion. Though she had also heard that this liquid was mostly used as a form of torture on humans…

She gave a small nod and Nemon continued:

"But what makes this generation of pods even more invaluable is the fact that the temperature isn't simply lowered gradually to freeze someone. Instead a strong impulse of electromagnetic energy is used under a bit of pressure to force the liquid's atoms to stop their movement and take on a solid form. The process is almost instantaneous and only a nanosecond later the capsule reaches the required temperature, absolute zero, to keep this state up. The impulse is isolated from the environment so _you_ can stay as well if you want to." Nemon said with a side glance towards the Zar'tak who had just materialized in one of the shadows unnoticed, but flinched when the doctor had mentioned the electromagnetic Impulse.

His four arms drew close to his chest as he looked around, then he spotted Car and waved sheepishly at her. The Vortian smiled and returned the gesture. Set just frowned and hissed into his general direction.    

Jenna took a deep breath before slowly sinking down on the cushions and skidded around a little to get more comfortable. The cold feeling in her body had gotten a bit better but now she felt incredibly tired and tried to keep her eyes from shutting. Nemon stood up and gestured at Reliat to prime the machine. Suddenly Jenna jerked up a hand, wanted to sit up once more but she couldn't move a single one of her frozen muscles.

Set had seen her motion and probably the look on her face as well for he quickly shoved past Nemon and Reliat and kneeled down in front of the pod to cup her face in his hands and kiss her.

    "Remember: the next time you open your eyes I'll be there to _greet_ you." He whispered to her and brushed over her ice cold cheek. Jenna smiled and kissed him again. His lips felt hot on her mouth.

    "See you in a bit." She breathed back and slowly let go of him. Then the lid of the pod closed with a hiss and Jenna closed her eyes. But only a second later they snapped open again when a liquid first touched her feet and quickly kept climbing up her body. She would've never thought that there was anything even colder than the stuff inside her veins!

The sensation of lying inside a glass coffin and slowly getting covered by water was the worst she had ever experienced and her breath got shallower by the second while Jenna desperately forced herself to stay calm, what only caused her to break out in a cold sweat despite the freezing temperatures. Didn't aliens know about waterboarding?!

Panicking she could only stare at the rising water level and pleadingly wished to just faint!

The liquid - color- and odorless at it was it could've easily just been old, _non breathable_ water! - had already risen to her neck and kept crawling up her skin to her face, over her cheeks, her lips and finally tickled the corner of her eyes so she had to shut them.

Then she was completely submerged in the liquid and tried to suppress the urge to press her hands against the lid and push it open.

Jenna had involuntarily held her breath as soon as the liquid touched her nose, an ancient reflex in humans, so strong that babies even did it the second their face came in touch with water. But she couldn't bring herself to breathe in the liquid, didn't want to open her mouth and already thought she was going to suffocate like this when something touched her conscience and immediately calmed her heartbeat.

The Meekrob enveloped her panicked mind like in a tender embrace and although they didn't say anything she felt so calmed she opened her mouth and let the liquid run inside. When she did a slow, tiny intake she felt it entering her lungs, what caused her to cough, her body trying to get the foreign object out of her windpipe, but after a few wild coughs her lungs were already filled with the liquid and the reflex stopped. Through all that coughing she was now really out of breath and instinctively gasped for air. When she didn't feel anything odd except for a slight sting in her chest and the certainty that there was _oxygen_ in her lungs she calmed down even more and now that leady tiredness overcame her again; cold really made you tired, no wonder most people who suffered from hypothermia peacefully fell asleep in the end.

The Meekrob chimed quietly in her mind; she wasn't going to die, she would live and fight in a few days and she could use the rest.

Jenna yawned one more time, then there was a slight tremor and it got dark around her.

 

 

 _A few hours later -_ Rebellion _\- Cryo-storage_

The face inside the seamless, colorless ice was relaxed and had something enraptured about it when he took a closer look at it. The most fascinating thing had to be the strange fur on the human's head, framing the young, smooth face like a dark veil, caught weightless in the finality of cryostasis. He grinned as he repeated that word in his mind. Yes, _finality_ had a very good ring to it.

A noise in his back made him look over his shoulder but it was just his accessory who dragged the second unconscious guardsman behind the door to the cryo-storage with a strained groan before he returned to his watch-post at the door, the scaled tip of his tail twitching alertly.

His grin turned a tad wider; Tork's men had spent so many cycles searching for this very man but _he_ had managed to seek him out in just a few hours. It simply was all about if your _goals_ aligned if you wanted to find each other.

And yet it would have been so very easy to find him: You just had to look at the planets this damned invader had wreaked the most havoc upon, preferably leaving nothing but ashes and dust in his wake, then look among the crew for the few survivors of those species and take the three most scarred. Last thing you might want to check is which one of those three has the ability and know-how to manipulate the cameras on board and bam, you got yourself an old Kexian, barely recognizable beneath all his scars and burns, with the probably saddest past he had ever heard of and such a hatred for infamous invader Set that it was close to a miracle the Irken wasn't dead yet.

But admittedly that was probably only because Kexians where so very small that an Irken of Sets height would've simply crushed him under his boot without even realizing he had just stepped on  _someone._

He frowned at that. No, that was a little exaggerated to be honest, Kollux was close to 60 sik*, much smaller than any Vortian, to be sure, but strong enough to take one down, as he had demonstrated just now, and to control a hungry gut-gorger for long enough to stuff it into a goddamn cake! A truly diabolical plan but the man really had nothing to lose anymore, literally, so why care about your salvation?

Kollux turned around again and looked up to the frozen human. His face screwed into a disgusted expression.

    "Repulsive… how can you allow an Irken to beat you down mentally so much that you also allow them to share the bed with you?" he retched drily and then spat out in front of her. "I just wish that tech had just taken her to the Tallest, it would have only been just, given that she protected that monster from his righteous punishment!" The Kexian clenched his unproportional big, eight-fingered hands into tight fists, so that the padded scars bulged almost red through the otherwise white, scaled skin. His six, lance-shaped pupils widened and he hummed an evil, Kexian laugh. "But now I get my chance to pay him back! Now I will do to him what he did to me and he will know what it means to lose the most important thing in your life!"

He silently listened to Kollux's revenge speech and then looked back to the human woman, oblivious to what they had in store for her. He snorted approvingly and nodded.

    "True words my friend… Well then, I don't suppose your little trick with the cameras isn't going to last forever so we should hurry." With this he stepped next to the cryostasis-pod and called up the bracket's menu. Quickly he had initiated the undock-sequence and the heavy capsule was lifted off the wall and placed gently on the ground. Kollux attached the anti-gravitation modules on both sides of the pod and his grin turned into a disappointed frown when the floating capsule came to a halt a good bit out of his reach.

He had to stifle a chuckle at the grumpy face of his accomplice, he knew very well by now that Kollux would've loved to be the one to finish this, but so he was the one that had to push the floating pod out of the storage and down the hallway and he kept his heavy duty pistol at the ready. They had come so far, it didn't matter to him if he also had to kill someone just to finish this!

They had first planned to simply bundle the human into a jet and leave the _Rebellion,_ but since Kollux, or better, the _gut-gorger-killer_ , still hadn't been caught, Tork had reinforced security around the hangar so that escaping was a no-go. Fortunately there were other ways to get rid of unwanted _ballast_.

He noticed the flashing light of the waste chute at the other end of the hallway and sent Kollux with a curt nod to scout ahead. He halfway expected the Meekrob or his scary servant to pop up any moment now to stop them after all but the sector stayed quiet and abandoned. His heart did a satisfied jump in his chest when the pod hit the closed hatch of the waste chute with a soft sound.

Kollux returned to him, holstering his pistol and taking out his self made hacking-tool. As small as the Kexians might be - when it came down to improvising tech they were almost as skilled as those ethereal Meekrob. With one big eye on the tool and the other one set on the hallway next to them Kollux logged into waste-chute and airlock control and then pressed the button for "Hazard Waste" at the chute's panel. Normally a siren would've started blaring, accompanied by a decontamination sweep of the sector, but thanks to the hacking-tool it stayed quiet and the hatch opened without a sound.

Then Kollux did something Vaka hadn't thought about: he deactivated the built-in tracker of the pod. He gave a relieved exhale, his partner really was cautious despite all his hatred.

With his hands shaking from excitement Vaka pushed the cryostasis-pod into the waste chute and left it to Kollux to say some last words.

    "It's nothing personal, human, well… at least not on _my_ end, cuz you didn't up and murder my son. But let me tell ya, that's the last time your actions will put us all in danger!" the Kexian hissed full of hatred and punched the starting button so hard that the safety material cracked. With a loud, sharp hiss the capsule got sucked down and, without any detours through the waste-station, right into the black void of space.

    "May you find the peace I will never have." Vaka growled reluctantly, yet his traditions commanded him to even honor his enemy in their last final hours, and turned away from the empty waste chute  
  
  
  


* * *

  
  
* 60 sik, exactly 1 meter in scale

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Bye lady!" *GIR waving maniacally*
> 
> omg... what have I done?
> 
> Well, guess that's the end of Jenna, bye hun, nice knowing ya, have a good one, later alligator!
> 
> I'm still trying to eviscerate leftovers (=alcohol) from by birthday party so I apologize if there're any typos left in there


	87. The Hive - Pt. 4

###  **\- 29 The Hive –**

**Part 4**

_  
Five hours later_ – Rebellion – _Command Bridge_       

 

Tork was staring at the radar screen with an unmovably hardened expression. Not a single muscle stirred in his body and he had even stopped breathing, didn’t want to miss anything the sensors might catch. Unfortunately there was not much going on with the radar; or more precisely, nothing at all.

The techs on the bridge were bustling around hectically, trying frantically to tickle even more performance out of the sensors or switching to other algorithms over and over again, but after more than one hour by now there was a collective hopelessness, of finding Jenna, spreading slowly but surely among them. The Commander ground his teeth in anger and dared to shoot a quick side glance to the surveillance monitor of the cell Vaka was currently detained in, sitting on his pallet with arms crossed, as if this was nothing more than yet another inconvenience he had to suffer and not probably the last stop before his own death sentence.

Tork smashed a hard fist down on the console with enough force that his subordinates flinched in start.

It had taken the security cameras more than three hours to go back online in the cryo sector and recalibrate themselves, revealing the two unconscious watchmen behind the door to cryo-storage. Yet it had taken almost an additional ten minutes for the safety officer to notice the sudden change of the scenery and alarm Tork. As soon as the drowsy Commander had realized that someone had gained access to the cryo-storage, and thus also Jenna, he had immediately jumped out of bed, not even bothering to don his body armor, and hurried down towards the crime scene.

On his way he had first contacted Set and then Nemon, ordering the latter to immediately assemble a paramedic team along with a MedPod in front of the cryo-storage.

At that point they all had still been expecting that someone had just woken Jenna from cryo or that she had somehow been able to free herself, but when he had raced around the last corner to the sector he already heard Set’s absolutely mad and disbelieving roar and knew that something for more horrible must’ve had happened. And one look into the dark storage room was enough to make his heart stop. A sickening vertigo had taken over him as he inspected the room once more, yet to no avail.

Jenna was gone. But not just her, the entire cryo-pod was nowhere to be found and except for the two unconscious guardsmen there was no lead on what had happened in there, who was responsible for it and where Jenna was right now. Only the log of the bracket’s control gave some indication of _when_ she had vanished, but anything could have happened to her in those three hours since the last unauthorized access.

After Set had somewhat recovered from his outburst of pure rage, in which he had wreaked his anger on one of the walls out in the hallway, he immediately shouted orders in the communicator of his Pak to call his SIR unit to his side. The robot had come flying around the corner within a minute and saluted sharply and one-armed in front of his wrought up master, who only snapped at him to scan the entire sector for any form of traces and clues, as well as the camera’s memory storage and those of all the doors in the vicinity.

    “They couldn’t have left this level.” Tork had noted, otherwise the other guardsmen would have caught the culprits since _they_ hadn’t been knocked out. Nemon argued against it - they could have used the vents just as easily to take her down to one of the lower levels.

Set had only hissed at the two of them and then went to look on his own, every single scanner and spider leg ejected from his Pak, ready to kill any culprit foolish enough to show his face.

But in the end it had been Vaka, handing himself in and explaining in a completely calm and ice cold way what they had done and why. It took three soldiers and Tork himself to keep the furious Irken from simply tearing the haggard Vortian apart in mid-air, what said Vortian only commented with a disdainful glare in Set’s direction which had the invader on the brink of losing his mind and mow down the guards that were trying to hold him back before they managed to lead Vaka away.

Kollux the Kexian however didn’t have quite as much luck. SIR found the signature wave length of the hack-tool he had used to manipulate the waste chute’s controls and of course patched that information through to his master without any delay. Since Vaka had already told them everything they needed to know, as well as the fact that her pod didn’t have a locator beacon anymore, the gut-gorger-killer proved to be of no use for them to find Jenna. Which was why Set ordered his SIR-unit to find the Kexian and kill him.

    “And make him _suffer_.” He added cold blooded whereat his glare traveled towards Tork, indicating him clear as day that none of his damn commands would make him withdraw the order.

Tork had thought it wiser to not voice any protest in the face of his wrath and the guards hadn’t dared as well to object, some of them even approved Set’s cold decision with a grim nod, not least because the gut-gorger meant for the Irken had almost killed one of their comrades.

They had eventually found the bled-out, mutilated little corpse of the Kexian in one of the lower freight hangars, completely torn to pieces by SIRs blades. One of the guards that found him had fainted on the spot and the others had trouble not to vomit at the gruesome sight.

Even though the first Commander himself had choked at their report he had been undeniably relieved that this horrible act of vengeance had satisfied Set’s craving for revenge at least so far that he wasn’t so hell bent on executing Vaka anymore. Instead the invader had stayed on the Bridge for a while, where he paced about restless and with whipping antennae, letting his Pak snap open and shut until Tork couldn’t take it anymore and sent his second in command down to the flight deck to assemble a fighter squadron and fan out in front of the _Rebellion_ to further increase their scanning radius.

But the pilots hadn’t found anything either and by now the _Rebellion_ had come off course so far that it would be a futile approach to start searching in yet another quadrant. The waste chute usually shot out hazardous load with the same speed into space as a photon-missile, which was approximately at the speed of light, and every second carried the cryo-pod further and further away from them, and closer and closer towards possible dangers… asteroid belts, exoplanets, _suns_. Actually, everything with enough mass to create a gravitational field of its own was big enough to attract Jenna’s capsule and let it collide with it, and unfortunately the cryostasis-pods they had on board weren’t constructed for impacting unbraked on a planet’s surface or to withstand the heat of a scorching star…

    “Damnit…” Tork hissed choked up and palmed over his face with a sweat-drenched hand while he took a shaking breath of air. He didn’t want to, couldn’t _allow_ himself to admit it… but viewed logically with all odds calculated… it was more than likely that Jenna was already dead. The only solace he found in this was the certainty that she wouldn’t have noticed anything. “ _Shit_ … I’m so sorry kid, it’s all my fault.” The Commander whispered so quietly that none of the techs could hear him. But they had to see it, the grief and guilt on his face when he stepped back from the radar and dragged himself over to his seat to sink down on it, his face hidden in the palm of his hand as he gave the final order:

    “Break off the search… by now she is too far away for us to be able to precisely calculate her trajectory and find her…”

For a moment it got dead silent around him and Tork raised his head from his hand, confused.

Every pair of eyes was directed at him for a few shocked heartbeats; then, one by one, the crew members turned away and took up their usual places to bring the _Rebellion_ back on track. Tork straightened his shoulders a little, screwing up his face as his old wound made itself felt as if in silent accusation, and palmed over his aching chest. “Resume the course for Irk. We will finish this mission.” He added before slumping in his seat again and staring into the hypnotic patterns of the hyperlight-jump with a clouded expression.

Suddenly his comm piped up.

    “Commander Tork, sir, we have a _situation_ down on the flight deck!” one of the security officers radioed and he frowned annoyed. Another situation?

    “What is it?”

The guardsman seemed to fall into a stutter as he tried to explain the situation.

    “Uhm, it’s Lieutenant C-Commander Set, Commander. He, uhmm, he insists on taking one of the jets to, uh, c-continue the search for the human on his own, s-sir. I’m afraid we can’t stop him for much longer!”

Alarmed Tork jumped out of his seat and signaled the techs that he would leave the Bridge, while he transferred the channel onto his personal Chronometer and was already halfway out the door.

    “Keep every damned hatch closed, no matter what he might threaten you with, he mustn’t leave the ship! Not him as well…” the Commander bellowed and ran through the ship with wide leaps. His life guards, a Vortian named Ink and a Steelhunter that called himself Ironhead, followed him without a word from their posts next to the door.

When they arrived at the flight deck he saw right away that the situation at hand was extremely explosive and dangerous, especially for the ground crew personnel that had gathered in front of the launch hatch’s controls to shield it and started shaking slightly when Set jumped out of the jet he had just parked in front of the lock, even more menacing now that he was wearing his full armor, and marched up to them with wide, threatening strides. Two spider legs snapped from his Pak, glistening dangerously in the bright lighting of the hangar.

Tork gave his guards a nod, he wouldn’t require their assistance himself but the wanted to make sure that no harm would come to the members of the ground crew. The two bodyguards moved silently behind the fuming invader and awaited a sign from their Commander, who took a deep breath and then stepped right between his SIC and the huddling crew members.

    “Set, that’s enough.” He growled imperiously and furrowed his brows in indignation when he saw the challenging flash in those crimson eyes. But Set actually stopped a few steps in front of him even though he raised himself up to his full height, clenching his hands into tight fists that the metal one gave a shrill screech.

    “You for one might have accepted that we won’t be able to find her, but I will keep looking for her as long as it takes to find her!” the Irken hissed through gritted teeth and pointed at the hatch’s controls. “And now, with all due respect, step out of my way.”

Behind him the two life guards tensed warily but Tork didn’t let Set’s threatening gestures impress him. By now he knew the Irken well enough to know that his actual resolve to rebel against authority wasn’t as strong as Jenna’s by far.

    “Stand down, soldier! I won’t tolerate any more insubordinations from you, Lieutenant! What you’re about to do is mutiny and I can’t afford this form of behavior from my second in command of all people, not with what’s at stake here! If you won’t calm down yourself I will be forced to order Chief Medical Officer Nemon to sedate you, is that understood?” Tork boomed out and saw relieved how the combative expression fell from Set’s face and gave way to a sudden realization. After all he had been trained to obey his leaders from the cradle and something like that couldn’t be simply turned off.

The Irken laid his antennae on his head and even took a step back, and Tork’s body guards relaxed visibly as well when the impending escalation decompressed. The Commander signaled the ground crew to scram and gave his guard a nod as well to leave him. Even if Set could’ve used a public lecture for once to cool his high and mighty head he knew all too well how he was feeling right now and didn’t want to drag his agony out into the open to top it all.

Once they were alone Tork sighed deeply and shook his head. Set kept staring away over his head with his jaws clenched, out the air lock into the endless void, his antennae twitching tensed and impatient.

    “It’s my fault… I never should’ve let her out of sight for one second.” He finally hissed and turned away from the hatch. Tork followed him as he pushed the jet back to its lot with his bare hands, alleviated that this angry force hadn’t come down on those poor, innocent ground crew members.

    “You can’t blame yourself for what happened, Set. If we had caught this Kexian sooner…” Tork tried to appease him but the dry laughter with which he interrupted the Commander made him fall silent.

    “Of _course_ it had to be a Kexian… how could I have been so blind this whole time? From all the planets I’ve conquered and destroyed there was none I left so barren and wasted than theirs, their population completely eradicated safe for a few dozen. But the most repulsive thing about this is that I could only remember them when SIR played me my report from back then… and Vaka…” he uttered that name with so much hatred it sounded more like a growl. The Commander shook his head again.

    “Vaka was my fault as well. I should have sent him back on the _Vengeance_ as soon as they had decided about Jenna’s verdict… it was irresponsible of me to keep him, an embittered, mourning father, on this ship along with her, but I thought… I thought he would be reasonable enough to understand that Jenna is… _was_ our last hope to win this war.” He admitted and looked up to the tall invader, who was scrutinizing him thoughtfully.

“I’m sorry, Set, I know how you must feel.” He added under his breath and with earnest compassion in his voice but Set only snorted sibilantly.

    “Oh yeah, do you?” he hissed bitter and flinched surprised when Tork openly snarled at him.

    “Damn right I do! After all I lost my planet, the majority of my people, countless friends and the mother of my only child. Believe me, I know _exactly_ how it feels to lose someone you love, what it’s like to feel like you lost _everything_. But not all is lost yet; we can still win this war if we make it all the way to Irk and destroy the _Hive_. But we’re gonna need you for this, now more than ever. You are the only one who can take us to this monster, Set. And believe me, I would let you go at once to look for Jenna, to search every single sector of the galaxy for her and only return once you’ve found her, if our mission wouldn’t depend so much on you…” he asserted fiercely.

Set’s expression grew a little less hostile at his words.

    “Then send someone else to look for her, but do something and don’t just write her off like that!” he demanded and Tork was just about to rack his brain over who he could possibly assign with this dangerous, and quite futile mission, with whom he could actually go without, when suddenly a black shadow formed out of the thin air before them and quickly took on a familiar shape that stared at them out of five glowing eyes while the mental contact to the creature established with a palpable shock inside their minds.

    _“_ I _will find her.”_ The Zar'tak said with such conviction that Tork nodded involuntarily. Of course, he had already been able to find Jenna on home planet, he was probably the only one capable of finding her except for Set himself. _“My sovereign is boiling with indignation that we lost Jenna and I am too. In the most unfortunate case she could be found by the Irkens and then everything would be lost for our cause. He already ordered me to find her and only return once I have.”_

    “Then let me charge you officially as well to find Jenna. Take her jet, _Lightwing_ , and get going right away, every second could be the last for her.” Tork ordered him and felt a little spark of hope inside of him.

The five green eyes directed their gaze at Set and he felt a sudden feeling of compassion seeping over from the black alien’s consciousness into his own.

    _“We all carry the blame for this regrettable chain of events… wish me luck that I might find her in time.”_

He already wanted to turn around to run over to Jenna’s fighter when Set placed a hand on his shoulder and made the Zar'tak flinch startled. As he slowly turned his head he saw and felt the pain within the tall invader.

    “Find her… please.” He just growled and then left the hangar without another word. Tork looked after him before addressing the Zar'tak one more time.

   “How can you be so sure that you’ll find her?” he wanted to know and the telepath raised his four hands while his eyes closed a little, as if in reverence.

    _“My… my sovereign passed the biggest part of their energy towards me so that I can trace her… it weakened them greatly. Jenna is far away, but I can sense her. It is much more difficult than it was back on the Resistance’s home planet since I cannot feel her consciousness for she is still in cryostasis. The Meekrob used some of us for another purpose than being their scouts and mediators. Very close bonds, a_ melding, _between a Meekrob and their servant resulted in a life form so strong and powerful that those so called Oracles had the ability to look into the future… My sovereign did not only give me a great part of their power but also a great part of themselves. We are now partially melded and even though I can’t trace Jenna’s consciousness I can still tell where she will be, if I hurry, although I can’t say if she will already be dead once I get there… Apologies, but I have to go.”_ He added and summarily teleported right into Jenna’s jet.

Tork ran over to the manual controls and opened the departure hatch for the Zar'tak, who was steering the jet ably into the lock. But then a green glow engulfed the machine and grew stronger and stronger, glaring everyone inside the hangar. When the intensity was too strong to further look at it there was a loud noise and the jet was gone. Tork stared stunned at the spot where the fighter had hovered just a second ago, then he looked out into the universe and clenched his fists, sending a short prayer into the endless reaches of space that the Zar'tak might be successful. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had a bit of trouble with this section, trying to figure out what characters to play which part and how their actions could possibly affect the overall outcome of this story but I'm actually really happy how those last two chapters turned out and I'm already so excited for next week!! 
> 
> I hope you guys are still enjoying C U R I O S I T Y ._. it has gotten pretty quiet over the last weeks I'm just wondering if you guys simply had no time to read the latest chapters or if there's something bothering you, storywise. 
> 
> If there's anything, please let me know, I'm always open for constructive criticism and ideas and I appreciate any form of input or comments you guys have given me over the course of this story ♥
> 
>  
> 
> SO, anything excited to know why these chapters are called The Hive?? I sure am :D


	88. The Hive - Pt.5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Check out the C U R I O S I T Y Playlists on Deezer  
> ►Jenna: http://goo.gl/Rbqar5  
> ► The Horror of our Love: http://goo.gl/b95h06 (Thank you Helena! ♥)  
> ►CRIMSON EYES CODED MIND: http://goo.gl/A4yQNH  
> ►A Sky Full of Stars:http://goo.gl/qzbHW5 (Again, thx Helena!)

###  **\- 29 The Hive –**

**Part 5**

_  
??? - ??? - ???_

_??? days and ??? hours since abduction_

_Warning – Failed to connect to log-memory – creating new log on internal hard drive_

_[Log 1: Warning – Pod systems unstable – please charge or replace energy cells]_

_[Log 4: Warning – Radiation level above critical standards – please leave the radiated area!]_

_[Log 10: Warning – Hull breach detected!]_

_[Log 29: Warning]_

_[Log 485: Warning – Temperature levels critical – please connect to cryostasis dock!]_

_[Log 1067: Warning]_

_[Log 2389: Warning – Proximity alert!]_

_[Log 2390: Warning – Unauthorized access detected – Cryostasis disrupted]_

_[Warning]_

_[Warning]_

Pain.

That was the first thing she noticed. An excruciating pain inside her chest threatening to smother her and her body reacted before she could even understand what was going on. She coughed. Once, twice, stronger this time, and suddenly she heaved up a real gush of fluid. Her ribcage cramped already but there was still some of that liquid inside her lungs that wanted out, _had to_ get out! So she kept coughing and spitting, vomited eventually and took a shaking breath before losing consciousness again.

 

Cold.

The second sensation she consciously felt; her body shivered to drive out this biting cold inside her bones, but it wasn’t enough, the icy cold burned mercilessly inside her until she couldn’t tell anymore if she was really freezing or engulfed in flames. She didn’t dare to whimper because as soon as she parted her lips her clattering teeth immediately bit into her tongue and cheek. The blood streaming down her throat was as cold as her skin.

Suddenly she thought she was floating through the air, then felt embraced by many warm limbs, slimy, like tentacles, or were they claws? She seemed to mire in them, in their warmth… after a while the cold subsided and she fell into a deep, exhausted sleep that neither hunger nor thirst could disturb and that was closer to a coma.

 

When Jenna woke the third time she felt hot, although it wasn’t like being on fire anymore. Her skin was itching and burning terribly from something covering it she took for sweat at first. Her nose immediately noticed a nasty, foul smell that jerked her from her sleep completely. But when she opened her eyes it stayed dark around her. In the lack of eyesight her confused brain turned to her ears which picked up strange noises, so strange and alarming that she stayed still instinctively and tried not to move. All around her was a rustling and scraping sound, scratching and hissing, from above and underneath and every side, only drowned out by a monotonic humming from somewhere farer away.

She suddenly noticed that she was lying on something she couldn’t clearly identify, only that it was _alive_ , and it was pushing against her back; something else was wrapped around her middle and her arms were pressed against something stiff that felt weirdly slimy. Now that she was awake for a little while longer she realized she was slowly lifted and lowered in somewhat regular intervals, as though whatever she was stuck in was breathing gently. Her heartbeat painfully picked up its pace in her chest when panic rose in her and her breath quickened until she had trouble not to gasp with every shallow intake.

 _Where_ _was she_?!

The last thing she could recall was seeing Set’s face and his promise, the calming sensation of the Meekrob inside her mind and the resigned thought that she would be frozen any second now. But the current situation didn’t align with either her memory or anything that had happened before.

Jenna felt sick and dizzy, her stomach did a dangerous leap into her throat and she quickly closed her eyes to escape the vertigo but the feeling of being buried under something alive, closed in on every side by it, took the air out of her and almost made her faint again.

Where was Set?! He had said he would be there when she’d wake up; where was Nemon? Why was it so dark, why was she here and not in her pod? Where was her _pod_? Where was _here_?

All these frantic questions caused her to start shaking and suddenly the weight over her disappeared, at least it shifted so far that now a narrow ray of wan light fell on her eyelids and she immediately snapped them open, hopeful to be finally able to tell what was around her.

But what she saw made her wish she had never opened her eyes at all, her blood freezing once again in her veins.

She was lying right in the middle of a steaming pile of monstrous insects, giant roach-like creatures and bloated maggots as tall as a grown man. They were sprawled over her, under her, all around; their disgusting, hairy legs - thousands of them - tangled in the thin, torn gown she was still wearing and wrapped around her arms and legs. The sounds she had heard were coming from the many wings and plates of chitin scratching against each other when the insects turned and moved in their slumber, the hissing came from the countless heaving abdomens; soft, thick, yellow gasters, segmented and covered in thick black bristles.

The entire reeky pile she was stuck in was covered in a warm, sticky slime that had also completely coated Jenna and glued her hair into a single, stinking mat.

Panicked she shut her eyes again and tried even harder not to move a muscle, to not wake one of those insects! She had seen the sharp mandibles, dripping with saliva and the cold, bland eyes under the black head shields, void of any life… for now. Every little movement near her seemed to be the last for her but until now none of them had attacked. Jenna had to fight all her instincts to not thrash wildly and try to free herself from this crush. Tears of fear and confusion were streaming down her face and she held her breath so she wouldn’t sob.

This wasn’t the _Rebellion_ , not the MedBay, not the planet of the Resistance and not Irk. She was alone with these creatures. How she had come here she couldn’t say, couldn’t explain how she possibly could have ended up among a bunch of horrible insects from the safety of the _Rebellion_ and being inside a cryo-pod. But then she paused and frowned.

Maybe this was just another one of those dreams? One of those terrible nightmares where she was being chased by giant Paks and where this incorporeal voice was talking to her, beckoning her to come to them? But this would mean that the cryostasis failed to achieve the desired effect to turn off the Scouts inside her brain! Then those things would still be active and probably warn the _Hive_! She had to wake up some way!

As soon as she had thought it Jenna frowned again. The problem was, she wouldn’t be able to wake up if her body was still frozen in cryostasis. Horrified she looked around without turning her head. But if she couldn’t wake up… would she have to stay in this nightmare for the entire stasis?!

A sudden surge went through the heap of entangled bodies and Jenna dropped a good meter, slipped into a gap between two of the greasy abdomens and was now stuck even deeper inside the pile.

Above her the especially gruesome, almost two meter long maggot sank a bit into the developed hole and was now blocking out the light again. From its opened jaws ran a steady stream of slime and spit and dripped on her face that she had to close her eyes, trying to turn her face away from it what only caused one of the creatures next to her to wrap its legs tighter around her. Now she couldn’t move at all without inevitably waking one of them and suddenly doubted her theory about this being just a nightmare.

Her body was still awfully stiff and numb from being in cryo but she clearly felt the throbbing headache and her raw lungs; all clear signs that this was no dream at all, but real. Though she couldn’t tell if this was better or worse.

Suddenly her ears picked up a new sound; something drumming, like small, quick steps on wood. And it was coming closer. Jenna held her breath but didn’t close her eyes. Full of fear she wanted to see what was coming for her and to be able to defend herself in the worst case.

A quiet chattering and chirring resounded from all around her and got louder the closer the source of the footsteps came. Were the insects waking up? From her cramped position she could only stare up, past the drooling maggot creature, and wait what would happen next.

Then it got quiet again and she already thought it was gone, when it suddenly came darting through the gap between the maggot and its neighbor, taking the last bit of light, hissing. Jenna flinched and clenched her eyes shut now after all. Multiple claws with bristle-covered insides felt swiftly over her face, her chest and her stomach and drew back again while the insect bent over her was chattering bustling before it croaked and scrabbled away over her body to palpate the roach next to her, chirping all the while. The creature’s smell was nauseating and Jenna had to pull herself together to not flinch away from the hot, pulsating abdomen almost touching her face.

The insect seemed to have finished its inspection and chattered one more time before it squeezed its way through the mass of bodies with kicking legs, deeper into the pile until its voice faded. Only when she couldn’t hear it anymore Jenna dared to take a deep breath and calm her pounding heart. Whatever it was that had just happened, it had been a close call. Yet her situation hadn’t changed, she was still stuck in here and wouldn’t dare to try and crawl out of this heap as long as she didn’t know whether or not those creatures would attack her.

But something in the scurrying creature from just now had puzzled her. Something had seemed familiar to her, though she couldn’t quite pin down what it was. Even the smell now seemed weirdly known to her now, as well as the sounds…

Before she could make sense of all this a whole series of waves went through the mass of bodies and all of a sudden the maggots and roaches beneath and next to her started pushing her up, towards the surface. Scared to death Jenna could only draw her arms and legs to her chest and hope that this wasn’t going to be the end of her. The maggot that had been lying over her until now dealt her a last shove and the human tumbled down the giant pile of insects helter-skelter. She frantically felt around for something to hold onto, anything, but the slime coating everything including her was like soap under her and even sped up her glissade.

At least it also made the landing a lot softer; Jenna fell and sprawled face down in a deep layer of sullage and slime that smelled so gross she thrashed and kicked trying to lift her head out of the mud and get the slime out of her mouth and nose. Overcome by disgust she felt hot, bitter bile gush into her throat, mixing with the sludge, so she just curled up and retched, spat and gasped until she got most of it out and stayed bent over on her knees, her body exhausted from the strain.

Behind her the pile of maggots, roaches and other insects was in an uproar, they were hissing, snarling and chirping louder than before. Attracted by the noise the smaller, faster insect came back and hissed when it saw her. Before she could recover it jumped on her back, pushing her into the sludge again. When the six legs wrapped around her body, holding her down and in place while its abdomen curled forward to press against her bare crotch, Jenna lost it: With a wild, disgusted scream she threw herself around and tried to shake the creature off of her. But the thin legs had a grip like vices and it didn’t stop its attempts to copulate with her, not even when she reached back and sank her fingers into one of its eyes. The mental image of getting impregnated with eggs was enough to drive her into a mad rage; Jenna got up under panting and groaning and then jumped to drop flat on her back, burying the creature in the sludge beneath her.

The insect gave an agonized shriek and let up on her. She used the chance without a second thought and crawled through the silt, kicking and almost swimming through the sullage towards a big opening reminding her of one of the tunnels she had seen on the Prerk ship.

She stopped as if struck by lightning, lying in the mud and staring at the gaping tunnel. It really did look like the tunnel through which she had entered the giant hall back then to save Set from the Prerk’s clutches. Although all her instincts were screaming at her to get the hell out of here, Jenna couldn’t help but to look over her shoulder, look at the flouncing, hissing insect that now bobbed up and snarled at her. It was smaller and somewhat different, but it was definitely a Prerk.

    “But how…” she whispered confused when it already raced towards her and prepared to jump. She could only jerk up her arms before it came flying for her, just to get grabbed by two pairs of paws and be torn to pieces in mid-air. With a shocked gasp Jenna wheeled around and froze again.

A giant beast of a Prerk stood behind her, even more massive than the big hopper who had given her the black pearl back then, with mandibles as long as her forearm and a thatch of black quills sprouting out from his chitin helmet, decorated over and over with little, pale skulls.

He tossed the remains of his brother carelessly aside and then bent over Jenna. Before she could even think about flinching away from him, the four talon-armed paws already closed tightly around her upper arms and yanked her up on her feet. When she braced her feet against his pull the Prerk growled something in his language and tightened his grip around her arms until she whined and stopped struggling. For a moment she was taken aback why she couldn’t understand the Prerk but then she remembered terrified that she didn’t have the translator Set had given her at that time!

Immediately she looked down her body to reach for her belt but had to realize that she didn’t have that one either. Right, Nemon had told her to take it off.

She panicked again, she had no armor, nothing to make herself understood and above all her blood contained iron that was like a delicious drug to Prerk, and just now a big pair of mandibles was closing in on her face!      

The giant Prerk dipped his head further until his mouthparts grazed her forehead and then wrapped around her temples. Jenna shut her eyes, let the tears run freely and silently apologized to Set for leaving him alone now after all. Her trembling knees gave way but the Prerk was holding her too tight as that she could fall to the ground, away from the sharp jaws.

Why didn’t he bite down already? It would’ve been easy for him to rip off the top of her skull with one bite!

Jenna slowly opened one eye when nothing happened. Then the jaws disappeared again and the Prerk started talking insistently to her in his buzzing, clicking language, put her down on the ground again and pointed into the general direction of the scattered entrails of the smaller Prerk he had just saved her from. Jenna didn’t understand a single word and could only shake her head in helplessness. She had so many questions herself and she knew that the Prerk could possibly answer them but without a way to talk to them… if only she would have had some Pakrit left inside of her before getting frozen.

The big Prerk kept talking to her but soon fell silent, probably because he realized that the tiny alien in front of him didn’t understand one bit. With a frustrated hiss he clattered with his mandibles and looked down on Jenna, clueless, who was sitting in the mud and looking up to him with big eyes.

    “C- Can you really not understand me?” she tried scared and saw hopeful how he cocked his head to one side at her words. Vortian was something like a galactic world language, could the Prerk maybe have learned it somehow?

She pointed at herself.

“Jenna.”

Again he tilted his head to the side and opened his jaws. She repeated the gesture along with her name and then pointed at him. His wings, long, spiked at the edge with a spiny chitin rim, jittered briefly. Then he emitted a short, deep chirp that really just sounded like a chirp to her ears, yet when he repeated it she believed making out something close to “Tschar”. So she first pointed at herself, said her name and then gestured towards the Prerk.

    “Tschar?” she uttered unsure but he gaggled excited and tried a moment later to also say her name. Though from his throat it sounded more like the usual noises he made. She was about to correct him when he already bent down again and summarily picked her off the ground. Startled she screamed out but Tschar ignored her protest and threw her over his shoulder while trudging through the dark tunnel, croaking her name to himself.

As unsettling as the current developments were she couldn’t help but think that he was actually getting better at it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So Jenna's journey inside a cryostasis pod didn't turn out to be a DEAD end! But what about everyone else? Where's the fricking Zar'tak? How the hell did she end up with a bunch of Prerk and what do they want with her? Nibble her giblets? Squanch her squanch? Make her do their taxes?
> 
> Who knows! This is space, anything could happen!


	89. The Hive - Pt. 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Check out the C U R I O S I T Y Playlists on Deezer  
> ►Jenna: http://goo.gl/Rbqar5  
> ► The Horror of our Love: http://goo.gl/b95h06 (Thank you Helena! ♥)  
> ►CRIMSON EYES CODED MIND: http://goo.gl/A4yQNH  
> ►A Sky Full of Stars:http://goo.gl/qzbHW5 (Again, thx Helena!)

###  **\- 29 The Hive –**

**Part 6**

  
The way through the dark, meandering tunnels felt like an eternity to her and soon she had no idea how she would be able to get back to the cave. Not that she was longing to return to the stinking heap of insects and maggots all that soon, but it was the place she had regained her consciousness in and even though the smaller Prerk had literally tried to _mount_ her they seemed to have cared for her, after all she was still alive.

On their way they saw a few of the other, normal sized Prerk but they disappeared lickety-split in some of the holes dug into the walls as soon as they noticed Tschar and he hissed after them in a menacing fashion. Jenna recalled that the smaller Prerk, on the ship that had attacked them way back, had also only backed off once the big hopper roared at them. Maybe their hierarchy was based on sounds rather than smells as it was the case with ants… or something entirely else, considering those were still aliens. Moreover she was pretty sure the pile she had woken up in had to be some kind of hotbed or hatchery, the big maggot creatures were probably Prerk larvae and the small Prerk something like caretakers.

While she continued racking her brain and trying to come up with theories based on the little impressions she had gained, Tschar suddenly stopped and jumped into the air, reaching with his hands for the opening of another tunnel in the ceiling leading up almost vertically. Surprised Jenna yelped and clung to him with hands and feet alike. But she was still so weakened from the cryostasis that she couldn’t hold on to him.

    “Hey… Tschar?” she panted and felt how her fingers slipped further and further from his smooth thorax plate. “Tschar, help me!” she cried out panicking and now the giant Prerk finally reacted; with his upper pair of arms he held onto the walls and wrapped his second pair around Jenna’s waist to catch her. He emitted a series of dark grunting noises, which she recognized as Prerk laughter, and pushed her up until he could grab her with his upper claws, pressing her to his thorax. Jenna exhaled relieved and clutched him with all her strength. After he had made sure she wouldn’t slip again he resumed his ascend.

Although the entire lair was filled with a similar heat like the hatchery, the cold was still firmly embedded inside her bones which could only mean she must’ve still been in cryo when the Prerk had… yeah, what exactly? Had they just found the pod somewhere happenstantially? Or had they actually attacked the _Rebellion_? She frowned; no, the latter probably didn’t exactly apply. But then what happened? Had the rebels gotten attacked by the Irkens?

Jenna started to shiver and this time it wasn’t because of the cold. How long had she been in cryo? To her barely an hour had passed since she’d seen Set’s face above her, but theoretically it could have already been days, if not weeks!

    “Or maybe it was even a century…” she mumbled to herself and tried immediately to shake off this mental image. Hopefully there was _someone_ among the Prerk who understood Vortian and could explain to her what had happened…

A wave of pain rolled through her stomach and she groaned against Tschar’s shoulder. At first she feared she had suffered some internal damage that was only now piping up, but when her stomach actually _growled_ she knew it was just hunger.

But that posed an entirely new problem to her; she had no idea if the Prerk had any form of food she as a human could actually eat without poisoning herself with it. The problems gradually started to become too much for her and she was too exhausted for her brain to deal with it successfully. She just hoped that Tschar hadn’t just fetched her to finally suck that delicious blood out of her.

Thus she could only wait and hope. And _pray_. For the first time since her abduction, Jenna felt the need to ask a higher power for assistance, even though she also felt like she had finally been defeated doing so.

Above them the tunnel opened into a bigger corridor that went on horizontally again. She would’ve seen it as a sign of benevolence if Tschar had allowed her to walk on her own from here but he simply tucked her under his arms again the second they were out of the shaft and walked with quick steps towards the end of the tunnel. She looked up and noticed a subtle golden light, softly illuminating the darkness surrounding them. That surprised her; even the big hall on the Prerk ship had been dark and filthy but the path to this apparently well-lit chamber was almost clean and completely sludge-free.

Tschar started talking to her again and pointed with two claws towards the gleam but Jenna could only shake her head. When it came to his mind as well that she didn’t understand anything he stopped and carefully placed her on the ground. Curious she looked up to him. He really was a lot bigger than the hopper from back then, almost as tall as Set. And it was obvious he wanted to tell her something really important because he hunkered down in front of her and pointed at the golden passage that looked from far away as if it was closed up by a slightly see-through tarp, similarly veined like the wings on his back.

Tschar then placed a long talon on her chest, growled her name and implied a deep bow before he pointed at the door again. A little confused she was about to bow to him but he hissed negatively and got back up, walked around her and waved his four hands about above his head. Jenna furrowed her brows in concentration while she observed his weird display. Tschar’s hands seemed to form something over his head and he raised himself proudly into the air to look down on her.

Suddenly she thought she understood. With a nod she used her hands to mimic a door opening. Then she “stepped inside”, pointed at Tschar’s hands over his head and bowed down.

At first it seemed like she had gotten it wrong again since his mandibles flared widely. But then he gibbered enthusiastically and waved her to follow him as he walked on towards the golden light. Jenna smiled as she followed him. If she had understood correctly there had to be a great leader behind that door or at least someone she was to demonstrate respect for.

The door, which she had initially thought to be a tarp, was really an organic membrane that formed a hole once Tschar gently ran a claw over it. The golden light increased into a downright glare as they entered and Jenna was forced to shield her eyes. When she had somewhat adapted to the strong light she opened eyes and mouth widely and sank to her knees without even thinking about it.

Before them sat a real monster of a Prerk, about four to five meters tall, perched on a big, see-through sack, expanding and collapsing with every slow breath.

The creature was somewhat similar to the Prerk she had met before, if you’d leave away the height. But its head was adorned by some sort of dark red-brown chitin antlers, which was probably what Tschar had meant to hint at. Its arms were very short and seemed a little stunted for its size, apparently it didn’t have to use them. Its body was entirely white, not the murky brown and green of the smaller Prerk and certainly not the shimmering black of Tschar or the big hopper. The golden light came from countless threads hanging from the ceiling that were draped over and over with small gel bulbs emitting the light. They immediately reminded Jenna of an insect from Earth, whose larvae used glued threads just like these to catch moths.

Even smaller versions of the caretakers were crawling all around and over the creature, cleaning, massaging and inspecting its massive body, gently chirping from time to time so that the entire room was filled with a constant background of noise.

Tschar had bowed as well, giving a high, servile chirr. The creature cocked its giant head to one side and gave a deep, melodious sound in return that went through Jenna’s chest like a strong bass, making her breath falter for a second. Tschar’s wings trembled at the sound and he bowed again before raising his head and replying something in their language while gesturing towards Jenna. The giant Prerk swayed its head from one side to the other, pondering, then gave Tschar a few instructions before it reclined and the big eyes grew dim.

Confused she looked at her companion but he only chirped and waved her to follow him back outside. Jenna shot a last look over her shoulder and saw that the creature was watching her on the quiet, yet pretended to be asleep as soon as it noticed her stare.

    “Who was _that_?” she uttered quietly but only got a buzz back and shrugged witg a sigh.

Tschar led her back the way they came but he walked past the shaft they had crawled through. Curiously Jenna wondered where he would take her now when her still very agitated brain tried to tell her that she probably would end up being the dessert now after all. Up to this point no Prerk had troubled her for her blood and that made her wary, involuntarily. But she kept following Tschar nevertheless until they arrived at another one of those membranes and he opened it the same way he had just then. But behind this one didn’t lay another nicely lit chamber but a similarly dark cave as the one she had woken up in. Yet in this one the Prerk weren’t simply sleeping in one big, chaotic, slimy pile on the floor but in small groups in alcoves dug into the dome-like walls.

Tschar hissed something and a few of the dozing Prerk lifted their heads curiously to have a close look at the newcomers. Jenna felt her hackles rising.

All of those Prerk were of the same stature as either the big hopper from the ship that had attacked Set or even as big as Tschar. And they were eying her with an awful lot of interest. The memory of the small insect from just now crossed her mind and she took a nervous step back. Tschar chattered at her and placed a hand on her back to push her forward again. His raw strength, although applied gently, was enough to make her stagger forward, into the middle of the room. She instinctively wrapped her torn gown closer around her shaking body and looked around alertly. From somewhere up came a silent growl that educed a few dark chuckles. Tschar chortled as well.

With her heart pounding Jenna tried to keep them all in her sight but one already had managed to sneak up on her and grabbed her arm with two claws. Startled she wheeled around and was faced with one of the big Prerk. Tschar hissed something in that one’s direction but the other Prerk didn’t let that deter him and examined her curiously. Jenna tried to free herself, panicking, but if the smaller Prerk’s legs had been like vices then his grip was pure, unyielding steel.

    “Let go!” she cried out with cracking voice and the dark eyes under the chitin helmet seemed to flash. Then the Prerk flared his mandibles and laughed loudly before pulling her into an embrace tight enough to break every single bone in her body.

    “Ssssmall creature!” he buzzed happily and ripped out a few of her hairs when he tried to muss the glued mat on her head.

Jenna gasped breathless and then looked flabbergasted into that dreadful face, completely stunned he had not only recognized her but, more importantly, talked to her in _Vortian_.

    “W-what?” she breathed confounded and was swiped off her feet when the big hopper lifted her up. Then she suddenly realized: it really was _the_ big hopper, the one that had attacked Set’s ship! Her jaw dropped and she looked him over one more time. Yes, the small pearls decorating the spikes on his head were the same.

    “You wake, good, good. We in worry.” He rattled on and put her down on the ground again. Jenna tried a stretch and found relieved that her back hadn’t been broken. Then she shook her head in confusion.

    “You… but what are you doing here? Is this your ship? I… how did you find me, what happened? Where are the rebels, did you see them?!” The questions were sputtering out of her and with them tears of fear but also relief. He would be able to explain to her what had happened! But the big hopper shook his head firmly.

    “You sssstill too weak, ssssmall creature, very long in cold… hasss to regain ssstrength or you die. Not you worry, I, Korr, will watccch over yousss.” He hummed friendly but she grabbed the rim of his helmet and pulled him down to her.

    “Korr, please, I need to know what happened! Was the _Rebellion_ attacked?” It was probably more the unexpected touch rather than her begging that made him pause and he rattled his mandibles. Around them the other Prerk were muttering. Korr hissed quietly and carried her to the alcove he had crawled out of where he dropped her ungently. Then he crouched down before her.

    “You sssleep now… I don’t know what’ssss with rebelssss. We find youssss in ssspace, in cold, far away from any rebelssss. They on way to Irk, sssswarm didn't follow, hive didn’t follow. You ssssleep now, you weak and cold.”

She crossed her arms angrily over her chest; she would only ever be able to sleep once she knew what the hell had happened! But before Jenna could tell him that Korr quickly climbed into the niche with her, wrapping all four arms around her and just pulled her down onto her side with him. Her protest caught in her throat from the start and she just widened her eyes. Korr muttered to himself while he pulled her even closer to his thorax without any sign of delicacy until her face got nearly squashed against it.

After a few deep breaths he was already fast asleep and his arms didn’t budge a millimeter when she pushed against them tentatively. But before she thought she could reconcile herself to this she felt someone else pushing against her back and looked over her shoulder. Tschar was still chuckling as he nestled against her, wrapping two arms around her as well; his wings fluttered briefly and placed themselves neatly on his back. Then he was already asleep as well and Jenna felt the sudden urge to scream. Jammed between those two big, warm bodies she couldn’t do much else than stay still and ponder herself tired until she drifted into sleep herself.

   
  


She woke screaming and first didn’t know where she was. When multiple hands touched her body, grabbing her she lashed out panicked, tried to fend off the alleged attackers that had been hunting her just now. Then she heard calming chirps and clacks and her memories returned.

Jenna blinked in the darkness until her eyes had adapted so far that she could make out Korr’s face. The Prerk captain stroked over her cheek and slapped it lightly, as if trying to shake the nightmare’s last horrors from her. She wanted to raise her hands and stop him but she was too weak to move around greatly so she stayed still, catching her breath.

She felt gross; her body was sweat drenched and itching terribly from the halfway dried mud and slime on her skin, her scalp was feeling uncomfortably strained since her hair was still so very glued together that every single one felt like it was about to get torn out of its root. And even though the overall stench around her made her sick her stomach was growling so desperately it was downright painful.

Behind her Tschar hummed calming and sat up, the two Prerk exchanged a few words in their language, then Korr leaned over her and reached under her back to carefully lift her up into a sitting position.

    “Ssssmall human hunger, yesss? Needssss foodsss.” He gave a loud roar and suddenly one of the caretakers appeared out of a tiny hole in the back of the alcove, chirping submissively. The bigger Prerk gave him an order, shooed him away with a brusque wave of his hands and then started to stretch his body with relish.

Jenna looked around; everywhere the big Prerk were waking from their sleep, although some of them looked like they had already been jerked awake by her screams some time ago, and were grooming themselves with the help of a real flock of caretakers.

Tschar leaned forward behind Jenna and said something to Korr who was just now cleaning his arms with his mandibles. He turned to her:

    “Tssschar asssk what you dream. Dream of big eye? Dream of big ccccircle?” he cocked his head curiously.

Stunned Jenna stared back at him; she had indeed dreamt of the giant Paks again, and the big, crimson eyes in their middle. Though this time she had also dreamt of Set… and although she hadn’t seen him she had felt that he was in danger.

She gave a slow nod as an answer. The two Prerk immediately started chattering with each other excitedly and it took a while until Korr turned back to Jenna.

    “Queen sayssss youss got Irkensss blood in you. Ssshe ssmell it. Ssso you _did_ kill the Irken dog after all, yesss? Thissss why with rebelsssss? They made you their Sssentinel?” he asked her ecstatic and it took Jenna a moment to understand any of that. But then she snapped her eyes open.

    “Wait… your- your queen _smelled_ the Pakrit remains inside me? The scouts? I don’t… how do you know about the Pakrit and its side effects?” she was, if possible, even more confused than before. Korr scratched his head and folded his mouthparts new. Then he gave a negative hissing.

    “You better talk to queen. Sshe expecting you, yess, ssshe will explain. But firssst eat. Fainting before queen very flattering but not like thisss.” He said and Jenna had to smirk at the somewhat clumsy joke although the imagination of Prerk food made her a little sick again.

Korr knocked against his thorax and Tschar, who had been intently, but silently, listening to their conversation chuckled, patting his chest plate as well. Jenna scratched her arms lost in thoughts and tried to come up with a way to get Korr to tell her how they had found her and what else had happened.

    “Korr, what happened after my master gave you the blood?” she began cautiously, though the mere mention of her blood seemed to pose a big risk for her. The big Prerk grunted, flapping his wings.

    “We drinksss… good russhh, yesss.” He started drooling involuntarily at the memory and she held her breath. “But then only one tube left. We head back, pick up Irken’ssss trace. But Irk already united with armada, we ssstay far away, waiting. Then Irk leavesss armada to dessstroy planet and returnsss. Sshortly after leavessss armada again, fasster. We follow, curiousss why Irken being chassssed by other Irkensss. Other dogsss turn around, we keep following. To planet, but too many there, planet too crowded, we wait. Then Irken leavesss planet, we follow. Prepare next attack but then rebelsss appear and enter Irkensss ssship. Then leave. We confusssed, think Irken isss dead, want to attack but he not dead, he follow rebelsss.”

Jenna listened speechless as Korr told her how they had followed Set all the way to the ice moon and then flew after the _Rebellion_ , hoping that they perhaps could make them some of the delicious blood. But soon they had found something much more worthwhile; namely the trace of trash and garbage the _Rebellion_ was leaving behind.

Apparently Prerk were born opportunists and could make use of nearly anything they came across. When the rebels reached their Home Base the Prerk landed a small scouting team out in the wastelands to explore the city. On their first night they had spotted Car and Jenna in the desert which was why Korr had ordered them to wait. If the human was still alive there might still be a chance to get more blood synthesized by the rebels.

The Prerk had stayed on the planet, even when the rebels evacuated it; the abandoned city was too lucrative a scavenging site as to just leave it all behind. Only once the Planetjackers showed up the Prerk had scrammed. They went back to follow the trail of garbage, trying to find the _Rebellion_ again but they soon realized that they had set a direct course for Irk and aborted their pursuit. They wouldn’t risk a confrontation with the Irkens just for the unlikely chance of getting a little bit of iron and more trash, though they stayed in the area to collect everything they could find.

Eventually they had found Jenna’s cryostasis-pod but it took them a while to understand what it was, how to reverse the cryostasis and open the pod.

    “In lassst sssecond I could sssave you from being eaten by sssscavenger… you wasss cold and blue, they thinksss you dead. But then you ssspit and vomit, not dead, good, good. Mmmmh but now you eatsss. Get sssstrong again. Then meet queen, yesss.” Korr waggled his mandibles, spraying saliva everywhere just as the caretaker returned, setting down three gourd-like pots in front of them, before disappearing with more submissive chirping.

Tschar chuckled contented and already snatched one of the bottles. Jenna took another one that Korr handed her and thanked him before shooting a wary look inside.

    “What is that?” she asked nervous and glimpsed over to Tschar who was raising the bottle to his mandibles, grunting happily. Korr took a deep sip from his and smacked loudly.

    “Isss good! Only ssstrong huntersss and warriorsss get to drink… nectar? Vortian isss no good language to dessscribe food.” He complained and reached out with one of his four hands to bring the bottle to her lips and tilt it. Jenna swallowed tense when she felt something sticky, like honey, run against her tightly closed mouth. Then she held her breath and took the tiniest of samples. She nearly spat it out again in a stream, along with the miserable remains of her stomach’s contents but she forced herself to swallow the disgusting, slimy swill that tasted alarmingly close to sour milk since she didn't want to offend the Prerk. Though she couldn’t stop tears from welling up in her eyes.

Korr chirped delighted.

    “Aaah, isss tasting ssso good you cry. You true warrior.”  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay, friends dragged me out to watch the game yesterday (European championship btw) and we got terribly drunk x'D 
> 
> So Jenna met an old friend! Hopefully that Queen Bee can tell her more about what the fuck happened!  
> Stay slimy kids


	90. Battle Cry

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Check out the C U R I O S I T Y Playlists on Deezer  
> ►Jenna: http://goo.gl/Rbqar5  
> ► The Horror of our Love: http://goo.gl/b95h06 (Thank you Helena! ♥)  
> ►CRIMSON EYES CODED MIND: http://goo.gl/A4yQNH  
> ►A Sky Full of Stars:http://goo.gl/qzbHW5 (Again, thx Helena!)

**\- 30 Battle Cry –**

_A few moments later – Prerk hive – Sleeping chamber_

After they had finished their breakfast, and Jenna was certain she could keep it all down, Korr took her back to the queen. She wondered why she hadn’t seen right away that the giant creature was the queen of the Prerk; the big chitin antlers and most of all the huge egg-sack she was sitting on had pretty much given it away. But if Korr didn’t have the full command in here it could only mean that this wasn’t the same ship that had attacked Set’s cruiser. Yet when she asked him he only mentioned the hive again and the swarm around it. So then this had to be their nest, a mobile Prerk hive flying through space, with smaller ships such as Korr’s protecting it like a swarm or scouting out the area.

The golden light glared her again when they stepped through the membrane but this time she didn’t have to bow. The white queen waved her closer with a tiny arm and uttered a deep, gurgling sound that echoed through the big chamber. Korr grunted back and nudged the human gently. Hesitating Jenna approached the gigantic Prerk and suddenly felt reminded of the queen from the movie Aliens. But this one was radiating serenity and friendliness as she bent down to the small being, clacking with her mandibles. Two pairs of long, wispy feelers swung forth from underneath the set of chitin antlers and waved towards her in turns, as if she was sniffing at her.

After she had finished her inspection the queen cooed and gave Korr a signal. The big Prerk replied quietly and took up position next to the entrance while Jenna was trembling astir. Then the queen emitted a very deep sound, so deep that Jenna felt it rather than really hear it but she reacted to it without wanting to: a dull throbbing inside her head and the sudden urge to flee, similar to the sensation she had experienced in the presence of the Meekrob. Groaning she held her forehead and tried to get her own body under control again. The queen’s humming seemed to come from far away when she spoke to her:

    “Human creature… I’m relieved to see you’re feeling better; my captain was very worried for you, as was I. Never have I met another alien who tasted Irken blood and survived, except for myself. Korr told me where you come from and what happened to you. And yet you stayed strong enough to kill your tormentor and drink his blood.”

She paused for a moment and seemed to catch her breath. Her Vortian was almost perfect, only a slight hissing stayed in her pronunciation.

Jenna had composed herself again after her panic attack and shook her head, dazed.

    “I’m deeply grateful that you found me and took me in, queen, I owe you my life. But… I didn’t kill the Irken who abducted me.”

A quizzed sound slipped the massive Prerk and she cocked her head.

    “You didn’t? Then how did you get to drink his blood? I can clearly smell it on you and your reaction to my battle cry proves that you have the gift of the sentinel.”

The gift of the sentinel? What was that supposed to be? But she recalled that Korr had asked her if the rebels had made her their sentinel because of the Pakrit remnants inside her.

    “He gave it to me.” She answered the question and the queen uttered an outraged hiss the caretakers took up until the entire chamber was buzzing. Even Korr snarled shocked. Jenna tensed alarmed and looked around nervously but the Prerk calmed down again.

“It’s the truth! I changed him! When I was trapped on the _Massive_ I met a former Irken scientist who had managed to shake off her Pak’s control over her. She was the same as you and me, she was able to decide for herself and got punished for that by the Tallest! She gave me her entire Pakrit and died in the process so that I could live”

The silence following her words was probably even scarier than the angry hissing from before so she kept talking.

“Set, the Irken who abducted me, was close to dying because he resisted his Codes for me. I asked the rebels for help and they ordered me to destroy an Irken space station for them. Set gave me some of his Pakrit so I would make it… and I was able to save his life and free him from the Pak’s control. Now he is... very different. He protects me, cares for me… and he loves me.” She could only whisper the last part because a sudden lump in her throat choked her up.

The feeling from her dream, that he was in great danger, was still so fresh in her mind that she took fright. She had to get back! What if Set was out there looking for her and got captured by the Tallest? Or was it possible he hadn’t managed to bear the loss of her? Perhaps it was true that an entire century had passed and he wasn’t even alive anymore!

Her inner turmoil must’ve had also been visible on the outside because the queen cooed calmingly.

    “It’s alright, little one, I believe you. If you say it is true, then so be it. I have killed many Irkens in my youth and drank their blood to receive the visions with which I am now able to protect my colony from them. With their help I see if the Irkens are close and where we have to go to avoid them… we have grown few. Many died already before I got to be queen and even more died because we were thirsting for revenge. Korr told me you have the visions as well, yes?”

A little confused Jenna shook her head.

    “I don’t know if they are really _visions_ , I just constantly dream of… of Paks chasing me, of a big eye in their middle and a voice calling to me. The rebels found out that the blood and Pakrit of the Irkens contains tiny, synthetic molecules that infest the neural system. They… they are also the reason why I… lose control.” She admitted and waited with pounding heart for the queen’s reaction. The Prerk hissed quietly and dipped her head a little in grief.

    “I know of the frenzy… my mother told me about it and I’ve seen it a few times myself. Lower individuals of our kind can’t receive the gift. When they drink Irken blood they do see the visions for a short moment but after that they fall victim to madness and rage and even attack their brethren. Then they die. Which is why it is only reserved to queens to drink of the dogs’ blood in order to lead our swarm with the visions. The eye you mentioned talks also to me, whispers, beckons and tells me to kill but I don’t let it control me.”

With round eyes Jenna looked up to her. She sensed that it had to be somehow related to the Prerk’s physiology that she could counteract the Scouts' impulses but she wished it would be possible for her as well.

    “How do you do it? I’ve lost control three times already and every time the intervals have gotten shorter. That was also the reason why I was put into cryostasis in the first place.” She explained and would have liked to ask her in the same breath if the queen knew what had happened to the rebels, but the Prerk raised her head again and gave a melodic growl. A caretaker came out of a tunnel in a corner and threw himself into the dust before the queen. She uttered a few commands and turned back to Jenna while the servant disappeared.

    “Then you have to drink more blood if you want to control it. I will gladly help you with that, we could really use another sentinel.”

Aghast Jenna shook her head and took a step back.

    “N- no, I can’t, if I drink any more of it I will die!” _And I can’t stay with you_ , she thought on but knew better than to say it out loud. As friendly as the queen might be it probably wasn’t the best idea to snub her.

Before she could protest any further the caretaker returned with a small, feebly thrashing Irken in his tow. The invader was as tall as Jenna but the Prerk’s hospitality didn’t seem to have agreed with him all that much, frail and apathetic as he was. Shocked she looked back to the queen, her heart frantically pounding in her chest in apprehension.

That was is, she would die! She would die a slow, agonizing death if she didn’t talk herself out of this, quickly!

“Y- you really don’t have to-“ she started with shaking voice but an imperious snarl from the queen made her flinch.

    “We can’t keep you here if you could succumb to the frenzy any time! You have to learn how to control the gift or I will kill you.” Her iron tone didn’t allow any objections and was clear as ice. Jenna swallowed her tears and suddenly got very calm. One way or another, she would die here, there was nothing she could do. Or was there?

Furtively she started biting the inside of her cheek until she tasted blood. If she could just spit it at one of the caretakers he might fall into such a rush that chaos would erupt inside the chamber…

“Don’t even think about it.” The Queen snapped sharply. “My might as queen is too strong for my children to disobey my commands over a few drops of iron. I smelled your blood even before you woke up in the breeding barrow and took according measures.” Then her voice softened, “Don’t be afraid, you have the gift in you, it won’t kill you.”

Easy for her to say but Jenna would’ve preferred some _scientific_ proof to back her theory; the only one she had was the one Nemon had told her – that she would _definitely_ die if she were to drink another single drop of Pakrit!

Suddenly strong hands grabbed her from behind, forcing her down on her knees. She jerked her head around and felt a sting of betrayal when she saw Korr who had seized her arms with an unmoved expression. The queen hissed and the caretaker sliced the whimpering Irken’s throat open with a tiny chitin knife before dragging the bleeding and twitching invader over to Jenna. Korr pushed her down with one hand between her shoulder blades until her face was already inside the gushing blood, splashing hot against her lips.

“Drink. Or Korr will kill you.” The queen commanded coldly. Jenna tried to writhe out of the Prerk’s grasp, to somehow break free but he shoved her even deeper into the open throat and growled warningly. The blood poured into her nostrils and burned on her mucosa.

“Drink!”

She drank. Jenna had already closed her eyes beforehand but now she clenched them shut as the sweet tasting blood ran down her throat. Her stomach jumped into her throat and bitter acid mixed with the taste of blood and the sour rest of the nectar she had for breakfast. She immediately regurgitated a part of it again but that didn’t stop Korr from pressing her down so she kept swallowing it, every draught like fire in her throat and she feared she would choke to death before the Pakrit in the blood could kill her.

Her body trembled and jerked violently, whether from disgust, fear of dying or already the Pakrit’s effect she couldn’t say. Gulp by gulp the blood filled her stomach up which grew hard and cramped to get rid of the foreign substance but she forced everything down again it wanted to heave up. When she already thought she had drunk enough blood that it would simply spill out her throat again, Korr suddenly let go of her and took a quick step back.

Without any support Jenna just collapsed on her side, panting, wrapping her arms around her convulsing stomach, groaning and drawing her knees to her chest. It felt like she was being torn apart from the inside, her guts dissolving from the strong alkali blood. Wave after wave of pain washed over her, every one stronger than the ones before and she started screaming, writhing on the floor. She couldn’t breathe, her chest felt as if someone was kneeling on top of her ribcage and her cramped fingers bent into claws as she ripped the remains of her gown apart trying to relive the restrictive feeling, but it did nothing,

There was no releasing death, no gently darkness delivering her from her agony, only pain, worse than anything she had ever endured. Her mind involuntarily raced back to her fight against Lenka, the Butcher, the Vorn and any pain she had ever known but they all faded in the wake of this fire consuming her.

Jenna’s entire being was centered on the pain, she didn’t see how Korr flared his mandibles nervously nor did she hear the hushed, hissing chant of the queen or her own incoherent screams. She could’ve been drifting through space just as well, without light or sound.

Her head seemed to bulge and burst out of its seams. Under all the pain she thought she could literally feel more and more Scouts breaking through the barrier to her nervous system and entering her brain until there was just no room left and they started destroying it, bursting her skull cap. Were they actually eating her cells or just crushing them? Were they slowly turning the seat of her soul into a gray soup until the synthetic organisms were the only thing left alive?

There was nothing she could do, she could only lie there shaking, writhing and begging that it would finally be over.

But then a new feeling took over her, one she knew very well by now: a red fog filled the space behind her closed eyelids, accompanied by distant screams that got louder and louder until they even cut out the pain. Feorn and Ria were screaming inside her head, begging her, make it stop Jenna! Then the disembodied voice joined in and chuckled darkly.

    _“Kill them.”_

Her hand moved on its own. Her fingers dug into the soft ground and pulled her body towards the queen. The red fog lifted a little, formed a hole through which she could see the Prerk, her target.

    _“Kill them!”_

She didn’t want to but her body wouldn't obey her but the command in her mind. The voice’s presence was much stronger than the three times before, almost touchable but still much less corporeal than that of the Meekrob. She couldn’t allow it to make her lose control again!

The pain inside her head now spread down to the nape of her neck until her entire spine felt hot and swollen – something was happening to her!

    _“Kill them, I command it!”_ the voice roared inside her head and even drowned out the screams. Again and again the presence shouted its order, the three voices melting into a numbing choir and Jenna saw white flashes before her inner eye, blurring the red fog.

It was too much for her; she shot up, covering her ears and screamed:

    “ _Stop_!”

At first she thought the Scouts had already destroyed the part of her brain responsible for her hearing because it was dead silent all of a sudden. But then she heard her own desperate breath and slowly opened her eyes. They worked fine as well, she saw Korr before her and her retina burned from the glaring light over her. Her skull was buzzing, felt like an angry beehive.

“Stop it…” she panted again and the buzzing stopped as well. Confused and haunted she propped up on her elbows and raised herself off the ground so she could see the queen. Despite her alien appearance she looked pretty contented and cooed quietly. Korr pulled Jenna up till she was standing on both her feet, still shaking. The torn gown slipped completely off her shoulders but there was nothing more unimportant to her than her nakedness right now.

Weak as a kitten she clung to the big Prerk and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, wiping blood and vomit from her chin. Her body was numbed from pain and the only thing she felt clearly was the pulsing sting of pain in her head and neck. But despite that she also felt stronger. Whatever had happened just now, she had survived it. Against all odds she hadn’t died. Yet.

The queen hummed with relief.

    “Welcome, sentinel. I knew you could do it.”

Jenna would’ve loved to ask her how this was even possible and if she was, by any chance, completely _mental_ , but she was too exhausted and just sank against Korr who looked down on her with pride, his wings slightly spread.

    “Ssssmal creature very sssstrong… Korr happy he not have to kill you.”

    “Ho- how did you know it would work? I’m a completely different lifeform than you.” She groaned at the queen and clasped a hand over her mouth when her stomach did a last, revolting jump. The queen laughed quietly.

    “The Meekrob thought they knew everything because they experimented on us, our children but they never learned to understand us. They knew that we were receiving the visions but they didn’t hear what they were telling us. The voice you hear, the eye, it is the true leader of the Irken dogs. And it calls for us to lure us into a trap.”

Jenna’s eyes widened in sudden realization and horror.

    “The _Hive_?! It’s the _Hive_ who is calling me?” It all made sense somehow: The _Hive_ had added the Scouts for a certain purpose to the Irkens’ blood and Pakrit. And not only to warn it of dangers, no, but apparently also to attract certain organisms. But for what? She faintly remembered the story Car had told her about how her mother disappeared. She had been ambushed by the Irkens on her search for abducted aliens. And the Meekrob had told her that the Irkens themselves had been performing their own Pakrit-experiments on other lifeforms. All this slowly started to form a certain image in her mind but she had the feeling that there was still something missing.

    “If you call it that… we just know it as the big eye since we only know it from the visions. How do you know of it?” the queen asked, jerking her from her thoughts.

    “Set got to know about it from the Tallest when the rebels attacked the _Massive_.” She started but was immediately interrupted by loud chirping and clacking and even the queen needed a moment until she had brought her court to order again. For the first time she looked rattled.

    “The rebels attacked the Tallest on their own ship? That’s not possible!” she called out and bent down to Korr with a rasping sound, but he only shrugged just as confused. Jenna took a step towards her and almost staggered before Korr could catch her again.

    “Yes it is! They forced the Tallest to retreat and destroyed the _Massive_! Set helped them and lost an arm in the fight against his former leaders. But it wasn’t enough to defeat the Irkens. We got unexpected help from a Meekrob who told us everything they knew about the _Hive_. Before I… got put into cryostasis and then woke up here we were on our way to Irk to destroy the _Hive_ , in the hope that we might be able to defeat the Empire this way.”

Jenna stopped for air, tried desperately to catch her breath again before the queen could interrupt her again but the Prerk was still silent.

“Please, I need to know where the rebels are right now and what else has happened! Have they already attacked Irk? Were they defeated or was the _Rebellion_ attacked by the armada? You have to tell me!” she demanded and returned the glare out of the unmoving compound eyes firmly. The queen rattled her mandibles and hissed quietly.

    “I don’t know what the rebels are up to or where they are… only that their trace leads to Irk, like you said. But either way I will never turn you in to them!”

Shocked Jenna stared at her.

    “What? W- _why_ -“ – “Because they follow a cursed Meekrob!” the Prerk roared so loud that the chamber shook and the glowing threads trembled, making their shadows dance. “They follow a Meekrob into their own doom! The Meekrob are no better than the Irkens, they experimented on our children and let them die from the frenzy! And when the Irken dogs rose up, subjugating the galaxy, those snobbish creatures fled the second their planet was done for! And now they suddenly show up again, by pure chance? I don’t think so! They’re planning something, probably to use our colony as a weapon against the Irkens. We caught one of their black spies following us, one of their five-eyed monstrosities shortly after we found you.”

Jenna’s mouth fell open in pure speechlessness and the tiny spark of hope that had been dying inside her suddenly flared into a beacon.

    “T- the _Zar'tak_?! The Zar'tak is here?” she blurted out flustered and the queen bared her mandibles in contempt.

    “Unfortunately, yes! I had ordered my guards to kill him but he protects himself with a force field, so my builders imprisoned him in one of the cells… but he grows weaker every day.” A bit of satisfaction resounded in her voice and Jenna’s heart raced away in her chest. She had to hurry! The Zar'tak was probably the only one who could help her, since the queen was evidently not willing to change her mind.

    “Can I see him? He might be able to tell me what happened!” she pleaded and to her surprise the queen nodded.

    “If you think you can fill the gaps in your memories, go ahead. But you’ll waste your time with him, he is incredibly stubborn and only says that he is on some sort of mission. Korr will take you to him. But perhaps you should get some rest first, sentinel.” She purred a bit friendlier but Jenna quickly shook her head and nudged Korr to leave the chamber as fast as possible!                       

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> aaaaugh I wanted so badly to already include the Zar'tak in this chapter but there was stuff to be explained because plot and then the pages got longer and longer! grrr~   
> anyway, hope you guys like the chapter!! (and don't worry, I haven't forgotten the Set/Jenna/Feorn goodie, it's still in the making and will be up soon! ^w^ ) 
> 
> How was your weekend?? I had lots of fun visiting my sister and getting my hair done did by her *-* it's really cool because she's literally the only one who knows about the whole plot and the ending besides me x'DD and she keeps begging me to turn this story into a hard-cover book ;__;


	91. Battle Cry - Pt. 2

###  **\- 30 Battle Cry –**

**Part 2**   
  


Korr lead her deeper into the hive, much deeper. Jenna slowly started wondering how big the Prerk nest had to be and how many Prerk might inhabit it but she assumed that it was probably the size of the _Rebellion_. The lower levels they crossed were humming and hissing from activity and they met more of the smaller fighters and caretakers who quickly retreated into the shadows of the many holes as soon as they spotted the two of them.

Her skull was still throbbing with pain and her nape and spine felt so hot and stiff that she could barely turn her head without hissing in agony. It unavoidably reminded her of the symptoms caused by meningitis and at one point she had to stop and sink against the wall groaning so she wouldn't throw up again. After just watching her for a few minutes Korr finally picked her up and summarily carried her the rest of the way. Jenna didn't object against it, she was actually glad she had the chance to catch her breath for a while. Maybe the queen had been right and it would have been better for her to first rest a bit, but she couldn't wait. If  the Zar'tak died before she got the chance to talk to him everything would be lost. Then she'd really have to live out her days in this hot, stinking hive, only surviving because of her nightmare visions.

Although they weren't slowed down by her anymore it still took them another half an hour before they arrived at the cellblock. They looked exactly like the one she had busted Set out of, even though those were even smaller and closer together, not to mention the sullage and death stench covering everything. Most of the cells were empty but in a few others Jenna spotted rotten remains and skeletons sticking out of the mud or inside cocoons made from hardened sludge. Korr stopped and put her down in front of one of those cells and he buzzed full of contempt. Jenna looked up and could stifle a shocked gasp in the last second.

The Zar'tak was almost completely cocooned into the back wall of his cell, only his head and hands were still visible. His eyes were closed and for a brief, terrible moment she thought he was dead. But then she heard his rattling breath and grabbed Korr's arm.

    "Let me in, please!" she pleaded quickly. He looked down on her at first, doubtful, but then he roared a command over his wide shoulder and soon after that the gate was lifted. Without waiting for it to open all the way Jenna dropped into the hand deep mud and crawled into the cell. Panting heavily and with a vertigo even more sickening than the smell, she got back on her feet and approached the prisoner hesitatingly. Indecisive she raised a hand, ignoring Korr's warning growl and placed it on the Zar'tak's cheek. The five green eyes snapped open immediately, startling her with their keen stare. Jenna held her breath, saw his gaze travelling down her body before it quickly darted back up to her face again but she didn't care that she was standing naked in front of him, she even would've started dancing if it had meant to keep him alive.

The Zar'tak groaned quietly and it took a while until she felt the familiar tickling in the back of her head and he had built up the mental contact. Her headache flared up in new intensity when he spoke to her and it was clear that he was very weak.

    _"Jenna… you're alive_. _"_ He could barely send before his body trembled and his face distorted in pain. With pounding heart she cupped his big head in her hands and palmed over the black, leathery skin.

    "Hey, stay with me, you hear me?" she whispered urging and felt a strange sting in her chest. She didn't even know if he even had a name. The green eyes opened again and he seemed to flash her a lopsided sneer though she could've easily just imagined that.

    _"Not to worry… I won't die, at least not all that soon. I thought I had seen_ you _die… but I am more than relieved to see that I was wrong… though… you do have more Scouts inside you than before… did you drink Pakrit again?"_  he asked confused and alarmed but she shook her head.

    "Not exactly… but Irken blood. And you're right, I was close to dying, so you weren't all that wrong. I don't know how it's possible I survived this… b- but how did you _find_ me?"

He coughed stifled and weakly struggled against the cocoon keeping him bolted to the wall.

    _"Long… a long story I am afraid… too long. I don't suppose you can get me out of here, can you?"_ Although he was saying it on the side like that she could hear the silent desperation in his thoughts and gulped hard.

    "I- I don't know. The queen wanted to kill you right after your arrival so I don't think she will be all too happy when I bust you out." She whispered under her breath with a glimpse towards Korr who was watching the Zar'tak warily. "How long… how long has it been since I…" her voice failed her and she bit her lower lip when the telepath took time to think about it.

    _"Nine…"_ he began and she was already about to sigh relieved when he continued: _"90 cycles, fifteen of which I've been imprisoned."_

90 days. Three months. Longer than she had even been away from Earth back then. Jenna rubbed her chest, again feeling this pressure as if someone was kneeling on her ribcage, pressing the air out of her lungs. With her legs impending to give in she had to clutch the cocoon around his chest.

She couldn't say anything, was too shocked to find any words. The Zar'tak hummed quietly above her.  _"I'm sorry… I should have found you sooner but it was… difficult to track you without the Scouts' impulses, forgive me."_ He murmured in her head and she nodded slowly.

    "Of course I forgive you! Oh god… and the rebels? W-what happened, how did I-"

    _"It was Commander Vaka. Him and a Kexian, the one who had tried to kill the Irken with the gut-gorger. They ejected your cryostasis-pod_ _through one of the waste chutes to kill you… or rather to be rid of you."_

Her head jerked up in speechless horror and she stared at him in disbelief. But of course, that was how the Prerk had said they had found her, while rummaging through the _Rebellion_ 's interstellar trash.

    "Set, what happened to him? Is he looking for me as well?" she asked quickly, still scared that her nightmare, her _vision_ , actually had some truth in it. And knowing Set she could easily imagine how he would have reacted to her being gone without a trace and possibly dead. The Zar'tak growled negating.

    _"He was already about to abandon the rebels to find you but Tork couldn't allow him to leave so they sent me on my way with your jet. My sovereign gave me a great part of their energy but I'm afraid I have nearly used it all up to defend myself from the Prerk trying to kill me. Jenna… you have to get me out of here, please! I can't see what has happened to the rebels while we were gone, but it might be we're already too late."_ He hissed haunting in her thoughts and she swallowed.

    "I don't know how…" she muttered but then their eyes met and suddenly she knew that there was indeed a way for her to free the Zar'tak and return to the rebels. He had seen the realization in her eyes and blinked slowly.

    _"You have a plan."_ He stated silently and she nodded.

    "But I have no idea if it's actually going to work at all… if the worst comes to the worst they will kill me." She breathed back so quiet that Korr wouldn't hear it and raised herself on her toes to gently peck his flat snout. "Thank you for hanging on so long for me… even though I haven't exactly been nice to you."

He chuckled quietly in her head.

    _"You really are an astonishing being…"_

She smiled crookedly and took a step back to part from him.

    "Astonishingly hard to kill maybe. Don't die, okay? Rest a little." With this she left the cell again and stepped past Korr to leave the cell block. Surprised the big Prerk had the gate closed again and followed her out into the dark tunnel. There he grabbed her shoulder and turned her around to him. She looked up into his unreadable face, confused, but it was obvious that he was irritated.

    "You ssspeak with him?! He not sssay anything!" The captain croaked distrustful and she nodded after a short moment of shock.

    "Oh, yeah, right. Zar'taks only talk through telepathy, that's why you couldn't hear anything." She explained patiently and was relieved the Prerk hadn't heard their entire conversation. To further placate him she told him what the Zar'tak had revealed to her. "I've been gone for 90 cycles.. god knows what happened to the rebels since then, unfortunately he doesn't know any details either." She finished and the despondency in her voice was real. "I have to get back to them, Korr! I have to help them!" she begged him and grabbed one of his arms. The Prerk eyed her, shaking his big head.

    "What can sssmall human do? You would die. Ssstay here asss sssentinel, very ressspected here, not get ssshot out of airlock." He tried to sway her. Jenna chewed her bottom lip. This would be a lot more difficult if she couldn't count on Korr's support… but what if she just came straight to the point and improvised? It had already worked once with Trook.

All of a sudden she clutched her head and feigned a stagger, what wasn't really hard in her state. Alarmed the big Prerk caught her and chirped concerned. "What isss you? Yousss not feeling well?" he asked worried and she gave a miserable whimper.

    "I… I don't know. Was that a vision? I think so…" she muttered and saw pleased how his mandibles flared. Then she suddenly jerked up in his  arms and gasped for air. "The _pod_! I have to get to the pod you found me in! A-and the jet the Zar'tak arrived in!" she uttered and grabbed his chitin helmet. Again it was this sudden touch that rattled him and he nodded quickly.

    "Come. Jet thisss way." He stuttered and waved her to follow. Jenna walked after him and exhaled quietly. Well that was going better than expected.

This time she had no trouble keeping up with his long legs, hope and a plan in her head gave her new strength. While she had no idea if her plan was actually going to work she had no other choice but to try. The way to _Lightwing_ was shorter than expected but still far enough that she was panting when they got there. The sight of the black fighter triggered a whole series of memories and emotions in her and Jenna had to fight the impulse not to simply break through the hive's wall with the jet and make a getaway. Korr flapped his mandibles as he examined the ship with pride.

    "Good jet, we can usse for partsss." He explained and now she couldn't help but wheel around to him, bristling, and shake her head.

    "That is _my_ jet, _Lightwing_! A… a very, very close friend of mine, who died protecting me gave it to me! I don't want you to tear it apart for scrap!" she snapped back and Korr flinched surprised before he slowly nodded.

    "No partsss." He promised and Jenna relaxed again. Then she climbed on  the wing and into the inside of the cockpit where she immediately found what she was looking for: her old pilot suit! Quickly she put it on, though it wasn't the clothing itself that she wanted but rather the possibilities to hide stuff in the big pockets. For example the contents of the first-aid kit she found under the seat and she rummaged through it until she found what she needed.

    "Oh please let this work." She muttered and swallowed a hand full of pain killers, making sure that Korr saw her do it. But what she subtly hid from him was the thing in her other hand she now dropped into the leg pouch of her overall. To make the whole thing a little more convincing - after all she had prated something about a _vision_ so now she had to do something vision-like - she looked around the cockpit and closed her eyes, her brows furrowed in silent concentration. Korr didn't say a word and waited patient until she opened her eyes again and came crawling back out of the cockpit. Only when she walked past him he addressed her.

    "What you sssee?" he wanted to know curious but Jenna just shrugged.

    "I have no idea… I guess I just have to get used to these visions before I can interpret them correctly but something tells me I need to examine those two things." She answered vaguely but that didn't seem to bother Korr all that much, he just nodded and indicated her to follow him again. Actually she didn't even have to search the pod anymore because her jet had yielded everything she needed. But she sensed it would be best to follow all the way through with her vision-plan.

Again they took a while to get to the chamber where the Prerk had stored her cryo-pod, though _scrap heap_ might've been more appropriate to call it. Although she didn't need anything from here she inspected the partially dismantled pod nevertheless, it gave her time to figure out a way to make Korr give her the final thing she needed to make her plan work out, without making him suspicious.

 _Just go with the flow,_ her inner voice reminded her quietly and she almost nodded in response, but then shook her head in visible frustration and came back to her feet, throwing her hands into the air disappointed. At least the pain killers were working a little so it didn't hurt her that much to frown deeply. Though it was quite weird that the pills were working at all despite the invader's blood she had drunk. An invader dying under a lot of stress. Reliat had told her that the amount of Pakrit in their blood tended to rise drastically under stress, at least that's how it had been with Set. But then she thought on and realized the invader probably had simply been too small and insignificant to carry high grade Pakrit like Set and it could be its effect was just not strong enough.

Korr had seen her reaction and stepped to her side.

    "You no sssee?" he asked commiserative and she groaned irritated.

    "It's all so… blurred! I think… I almost think I might've not drunk enough blood to get the visions right. Besides, I've thrown up most of it again and the invader was so small to begin with." She whined and shot him a glance out of big, terrified eyes.

_Yes, just keep going, everything's coming together…_

"Oh god." She sputtered startled and Korr took an alarmed step away from her. Was he probably thinking the same thing as her? "If I didn't drink enough… then I can still lose control anytime!" she panted and clasped her hands over her mouth in a dramatic gesture. _Okay, maybe not overdo it all that much, hm?_

Yet it was working: Korr looked around uneasy and then grabbed her to carry her back through the tunnels in a hurry. "H-hey, where are you taking me?"

    "To ssstorage."

   
  


This  _storage_ was another cell block in immediate proximity of the queen's chamber and Jenna immediately spotted the small tunnel through which the caretaker had dragged the flouncing Irken this morning. From there her gaze traveled up the walls of the high room that had more cocoons built from sludge and mud embedded into them. Though those were much thinner than the Zar'tak's shackles, see-through even. Inside she could see the lanky silhouettes of countless Irkens and she involuntarily held her breath. Of course this was the storage… the queen's blood storage.

Jenna swallowed. Had the Prerk back on Set's ship maybe even planned to take him to their hive and feed him to their queen?!

Quickly she shook this mental image off and suddenly realized she would have to kill one of them for her plan to succeed. And as much as she told herself that those Irkens were neither Set nor Ria nor Zim she couldn't help seeing their faces when she lifted a hand and randomly pointed at a taller invader, lifelessly stuck in his cocoon between two soldiers.

Korr nodded agreeing and climbed up the wall to get the Irken out of his prison. Now she didn't wonder anymore why none of the Paks had self destructed up to now even though some of them looked like they had been here for quite some time: the cocoons worked just like her cryostasis-pod and kept their occupants locked in a deep coma until somebody freed them from the slimy, honey colored cage.

Just like the invader slowly coming to after Korr dropped him on the floor before her. He started twitching and eventually opened his eyes, a dark violet, in which she saw her own reflection. Confused he wanted to open his mouth but then Korr already bent over him and sliced his throat all the way open with one claw. Crimson blood splashed over Jenna's feet and she quickly sank on her knees, rolling the croaking, thrashing Irken over on his side, with his back turned towards her, and pressed her lips into the open wound. Korr rasped confused.

    "Why you turn him around?" he asked curious and she looked back at him, her mouth already smeared with blood.

    "I just don't want to see his face while he dies…" she said quietly, the truth, and the Prerk grunted and walked to the entrance to wait. Jenna exhaled relieved and bent over the dead Irken, noisily sucking up the blood but let it pour out between her lips again right away. Fortunately for her the floor in here was covered in a deep layer of mud and sullage, though she started to think that this disgusting stuff was simply building material and not feces and dirt, and the blood mixed with it until it was nearly invisible.

While she pretended to drink the blood Jenna unobtrusively took out the syringe she had taken out of the first-aid kit and hid in her pocket. Now that its owner was dead it was easy to open the Pak's middle plate and get to its insides. Something inside the Pak was humming silently but she ignored it and quickly whipped out the syringe to insert the cannula into one of the big arteries. Then she dipped her head back into the Irken's gaping throat while she slowly filled the syringe. It was a big one and it would hold much more Pakrit than the mini thing Nemon had injected her with to test the Pakrit on her. As soon as the piston was pulled all the way back Jenna removed the syringe and put it back into her pocket, cautious not to prick herself.

Panting she bobbed up and wiped her mouth. It shouldn't occur to Korr she actually hadn't drunk a single drop of the blood, the floor was poached up and the slime had sucked up most of it. The rest was only convincing cosmetics given how messy this method was.

The Perk captain took her back to their sleeping room since Jenna told him she would like to rest for now to let the blood work and the big Prerk seemed relieved he finally wouldn't have to defy any more regulations for her. The chamber was mostly deserted so Jenna could calmly hole up in the alcove she had shared with Tschar and Korr and smuggle the filled syringe out of her pocket, the Pakrit glowing slightly inside. Her heart was pounding nervously, she had never before injected herself with anything and for the split of a second she thought about a heroin addict when she rolled up her sleeve and feeling the crook of her arm for a vein.

When she finally found one, and was sure it really was one, she set the cannula on her skin in a shallow angle and held her breath. It took her a while and many precious minutes in which she cursed herself until she slowly plunged the needle into her arm. Still she flinched at the pain and had to bite her tongue as she pushed down the piston. The Pakrit burned in her veins but at least the effect was as instant as it had been on the MedBay and the energy virtually exploded inside her. Jenna laid her head back with a satisfied moan - definitely drug potential - and smiled enraptured at the feeling of pure power flowing through her, with it the vivid sensation that her nerve tracts were splitting up and her muscles filling up to the brim with the Pakrit while the pain and cold left her body completely.

She rolled over on her back and allowed herself to bathe in the feeling for a while, elaborating her plan further in her head until it was so perfect that she wouldn't possibly fail.

Then she jumped out of the alcove and walked with calm, graceful steps down the tunnel towards the queen's chamber.      

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *jiggles excited*
> 
> sooo Jenna's been gone for fricking 90 days! Everything could've happened in the meantime! This is crazy!
> 
> I'm angry! I'll have to wait till spring 2017 for the next season of Game of Thrones ;___;


	92. Battle Cry - Pt. 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **EDIT: Due to technical problems the next update will be up on the 17th of July, sorry guys!**

###  **\- 30 Battle Cry –**

**Part 3**  
  
  
The tunnel was deserted but she could hear the caretakers loud and clear, scuttling through the walls, as well as the queen's infrasonic singin. It faintly reminded her of whale song only much more mournful and darker. Jenna memorized the range of frequencies very carefully and slowly approached the golden membrane that opened at a silent, telekinetic command, letting her enter.

The queen lifted her head in surprise and flared her mandibles, her song breaking off as she scrutinized the human. At a glance into her burning eyes she immediately uttered a silent warning call which her caretakers took up, spreading it through the entire nest while they retreated from the queen. Jenna pretended not to notice anything and kept walking towards her with relaxed steps until she was standing right in front of the queen who also tried to not let on about her true state of mind, but Jenna could distinctly hear her quick breath and the quiet grating of muscles beneath hard chitin contracting unnoticed. She knew she was in danger.

Jenna smiled cordially, seeming as though butter would melt in her mouth. The queen hummed salutatory, swaying her head from one side to the other, her antennae waving at her.

    "Sentinel," she purred, "Korr told me of your visions and that you were in need of more blood. How are you feeling?"

Jenna nodded in response and let her mind fan out; die queen's reinforcements were already on their way, but she didn't want to waste that much time waiting for her entire audience. The few big Prerk currently storming through the main tunnel would suffice.

She looked the queen straight in the eyes and uttered a deep, resounding roar, echoing though the chamber and causing the glowing threads to swing.

The queen's reaction to her own battle cry was just as incredulous as it was violent: she shrieked back furiously and jumped down from her egg-sack, which wasn't connected to her body but simply lying on the ground like that of a spider. _Who knows, maybe I'll sit down on it after this and hatch for a while_ , Jenna thought with an amused grin and laid her head back when the five meter tall queen landed on the ground before her with a thunderous sound and roared again, the giant wings raised over her head in a threat display and her mandibles opened so widely she could look down her black maw, spiked with thousands of hooked teeth.

    "You _dare_ challenge me in my own chamber you deceitful creature!? I took you in, cured your frenzy and saved your life! On your knees, it's not too late for you to stand down!" the Prerk snarled, fuming with rage and only hissed in impotent fury when Jenna made no move to surrender. Instead she focused her consciousness and entered the queen's mind with force, reading her in the split of a second and trying to gain control over her. But the queen only shook her head with a scream and wheeled around. Jenna had to jump to the side to dodge the giant, cornificated wing that would have cut her head clean off her shoulders.

In a flash she was back on her feet and jumped on the queen's long abdomen, ran up to her head and was forced to jump off again when she dropped on her back to crush the human. She rolled lithely and growled impatient. The queen stormed towards her, throwing her head down to snap at her. Jenna yanked her arms up and grabbed the two long jaws before they could cut her in half. Her muscles bulged under her skin, close to tearing it, as she fought the merciless bite of her opponent that hauled herself against the tiny human. The sharp pincers closed in on her throat relentlessly but then Jenna grinned wickedly and spun around, using the queen's force to throw her across the chamber. The impact of the massive body with the wall caused parts of the ceiling to rain down and Jenna caught them with telekinesis to fling them at the roaring queen like projectiles. Yet that only riled her up more and she rolled over onto her legs, spitting lividly to throw herself at the impudent creature again. Jenna waited until she was right at her before she jumped high into the air. Carried by her momentum the queen crashed into the wall behind her and now a pained groan mixed under her wrathful roaring. Jenna grabbed some of the glowing threads in mid-air and tore them out of their fixation in the ceiling. With a smooth twist she landed on the queen's back and quickly jumped over and under her, wrapping meter upon meter of the long vines around her body, her legs and the wings, binding them tightly together. Stunned by the collision the queen shook her head and then bent her abdomen upwards just as Jenna was jumping over her back again. She noticed the long poison sting more with her sixth sense, her outward mind, and reacted in time without any trouble: instead of slipping under the queen's belly again she jumped backwards over the bent abdomen and tied it to her back. The queen shrieked in pain and fell on her side trying to catch the flying human. Jenna landed soft-footed on the ground and sensed something flying at her. Without having to turn around she caught the spear meant to pierce her back and wheeled around.

Korr was standing in the door together with Tschar and a group of soldiers. He had thrown the spear at her. With one mental eye focused on the thrashing, roaring queen she stood up and again uttered the booming battle cry, a warning not to interfere. Deeply confused and bewildered the big Prerk looked at each other but didn't make any further move to stop her. She turned to the queen again and walked up to her bound rival, unhasting, weighing the crude spear in her hand. When she noticed the long weapon the queen cried out for help but her brood didn't stir and just kept staring at the two unequal adversaries, waiting how the fight would end.

Jenna rolled the queen on her back without any strain and hopped onto her thorax. The short arms made a grab for her and the giant head jerked up to bite her in two but she just kicked the arms away and waited until the jaws had closed before she placed a foot under the queen's chin and pushed her head back to expose the soft, vulnerable part between head and carapace. With a solemn, decisive expression she set the spear's blade against her throat and slowly pushed it deeper. Underneath the tough white skin she could see the thick, black veins, pulsing in fear. The queen's dark eyes were moving rapidly but her breath became calm in the face of her certain death.

    "Go on… do it. You defeated me, sentinel… claim your place as new queen… what are you waiting for!?" she hissed but instead of plunging the long spear into her body she pulled it back and rested the tip on the iridescent thorax of the defeated.

    "It was never my intention to kill you." She said quietly but the eerie echo in her voice carried the words through the entire chamber. Behind them she heard the guards mumbling in surprise when Korr translated. The queen eyed her warily, of course she didn't trust her at all. "It was also never my intention to steal your place and take over your hive… but I did defeat you and I can do it again if I wanted. Though what I _want_ is your help. I need to get to Irk, I have to help the rebels end this war and you will help me get to them. I won't demand you to fight with us… but I want you to judge the situation for yourself and then decide again if you'd prefer running like cowards, hoping the Irkens won't find you! Because they will if we don't stop them. You told me the _Hive_ talks to you through your visions? Believe me, it  _sees_ you as well and it will hunt you and destroy you as soon as it's done with us."

She tossed the spear aside carelessly and kneeled down on the queen's chest to bring her face close to hers. The Prerk recoiled alarmed but she gently cupped the big head in her hands and leaned her forehead against the smooth chitin. "Let me show you what it showed me… and what I already did to stop the Tallest. I will show you that there is also good within the Irkens once you free them from the _Hive_ 's claws." She breathed beseechingly and felt how the defensive barrier inside the queen's mind dissolved, allowing her to enter.

Jenna focused on what she wanted to send: images, feelings, voices and everything she had lived through and the queen trembled beneath her. She showed her the fights in the arena, Set reviving her and hugging her close to his chest, the Tallest, torturing Ria until Jenna threw herself between them. Ria ripping the Pak from her back and dying in agonizing pain so she could live. She showed her the rebels, Feorn, the fight for Set's life on the iced moon, the battle against Lenka until the images blurred into a sickening vortex. When she showed her what she had seen in her nightmares - the burning city, the humans getting hunted by giant Paks and the armada destroying the Resistance's planet - she felt how the queen's disbelief turned into fear and then rage. Only then Jenna severed the bond and withdrew from her mind. It was almost physical, as if they had really been connected for a short moment and the queen chirped quietly, shuddering. Jenna looked deeply into her eyes and the Prerk nodded slowly.

    "How can we call ourselves Warriors if we hide like craven worms from these dogs while others oppose them fearlessly? We will help you, human, you have my word… and I thank you for sparing my live even though it would have been your right, by our tradition, to kill me and take my place as queen." She hummed submissively and Jenna exhaled relieved.

    "Thank you…" she murmured and cut the chains with a fierce yank. "I'm sorry I attacked you like that but I really saw no other way."

The queen chuckled quietly and bobbed up, stretching her body and folding her disheveled wings neatly on her back.

    "It was the right way. The years have made us stubborn… who knows, maybe we owe you our future. Korr." She addressed the Prerk and he immediately sank on his knees, bowing his head. "Set a course for Irk. We will return the Resistance's weapon."

The soldiers replied with a collective, pugnacious bellow and left the chamber under wild chanting, repeating one word over and over. Jenna recognized it as her name and smiled. Then she turned back to the queen.

    "I'll also have to ask you to free the Zar'tak. He's a friend and we're going to need his help."

She had expected the queen to object to that but she just lowered her head and called upon a few of her caretakers to release the Zar'tak from his prison and see to him. Contented Jenna sighed and let the Pakrit drain from her muscles, winding down her metabolism and her brain functions so much that the Pakrit's effects would hopefully last till their arrival on Irk.

The queen climbed back on her egg cocoon and sang quietly to herself while more caretakers slowly returned to crawl over her, chirring anxiously and tending to her wounds with diligent care. She examined Jenna thoughtfully.

    "Where did you get that power? I've never seen anything like it… yet this isn't the first time you used it, is it? _What_ are you?" she asked quietly and Jenna sank down in front of her with crossed legs, shrugging.

    "You know, the Meekrob also experimented on my ancestors… though none of us knew about it until they told me. They found… potential within my species and when the Irkens were on the brink of destroying their planet they surrendered our location to them, hoping that this potential would help destroy the Empire. Yet I'm the only human who ever used it. It's got something to do with the Paks and what's inside them." She answered without going into greater detail. The queen hummed lost in thoughts and then growled some commands to her caretakers, nodding at Jenna. She wasn't concerned in the slightest when a group of them approached her but smiled at them and quickly peeled out of her overall as they started licking dirt and dried mud off her skin, grooming her.

Jenna leaned back and let the tiny insects work in peace - she was going home.

   
  


 

_Ten cycles later - Irk - Outer moon_

 

_134 days and 16 hours since abduction_

The attack wave was only an idle foray, another test of their line of defense  but Tork wasn't sure they would be able to fight it off this time. Until now the Irkens didn't seem to have realized that their defense was on the verge of collapsing but that was merely a matter of time. And then they would obliterate the Resistance.

The first Commander watched the happenings on the radar inside the command center they had located on the moon's surface, his hands drenched in sweat and cramped around the rim of the console that his knuckles were protruding his skin whitely. His strained eyes followed the small swarm of dots confronting the attackers, the sad remains of their fighter fleet.

He didn't dare to deploy any less than all of them, all they had left. Their remaining numbers were their strength and at the same time concealed the fact that the Resistance was gradually running out of fighters and soldiers.

The vanguard of their fleet, a single jet that quickly disengaged from the rest of the swarm and shot among the attacking Irkens, tore the enemy's formation apart in one fell swoop and forced the rest of the Irken jets to abandon their formation and engage in single combat. But the lone fighter eliminated them one by one with deadly precision before they could get even remotely within range of the other rebels.

Tork exhaled hissing and felt his cramped muscles loosen up a bit. The Irkens now realized that they had no chance of getting past the fleet of jets and retreated. Again the leader of their forces pulled away from the rest of his team to take up pursuit. Tork growled under his breath and snapped his fingers impatiently. One of the techs gave him a nod and immediately contacted the leader to order him back. Their remaining ships were already rallying again behind the protective shield and resumed their primary route of patrol. Only after solid ten minutes the leader turned around and joined his team.

Just now Tork allowed himself to breathe easy again and sank down in his seat. Without really noticing it he rubbed over his chest where his old wound was throbbing uncomfortably. By now it had become frequent enough to force the Commander to visit the MedBay daily.

One of his lieutenants was already drawing breath to give him the report but Tork stopped him with a wave of his hand, shaking his head. He had seen everything himself and it was already enough that they hadn't lost anyone today. He allowed himself a short moment in which he closed his eyes and calmed his racing heart. Every next cycle could easily be the last for them, that was clear to everybody, but as of yet they didn't allow the unspoken desperation and hopelessness of their situation to bring chaos into their ranks.

Suddenly Tork was torn from his moment of peace by loud shouts and he immediately jumped out of his seat to see what had startled his techs so badly. Of course everyone tried to talk to him at once but one look at the main screen was enough to block out their screams. A giant ship had appeared within their scanning radius, _behind_ them, and was slowly closing in on their position, slowly but unstoppably. And a ship that size could only mean one thing.

    "Shit… it's the _Vast_." Tork croaked shocked when he recognized the massive Irken warship which had been the armada's flagship before the _Massive_ , and he was already fumbling with his Chronometer to call the fighter fleet to the moon's backside when suddenly another navigator cried out beside him and pointed at his screen.

    "They're launching another attack!" he sputtered and frightful chaos broke out in the command center.

Tork stared helplessly at the two opponents assaulting them from both sides and his hand clawed at his chest. Then he made a decision and took the navigator's radio.

    "This is base, calling all jets: we have new targets inbound five thousand paces towards 43-7, angle 135 degree from the last attack. Engage immediately. _Vengeance_ , come in."

    "We're seeing it, Tork." The Captain growled through the airwaves and he could literally hear him bare his teeth. "Is that really the _Vast_?"

Tork tried to suppress the shaking in his voice as he replied his fellow commander.

    "What else? No fucking ship except maybe the _Massive_ is that big! The fighters are busy on the other side, so you have to eliminate her, otherwise they'll destroy the force field!" _And then we'll all be dead_.

    "Copy that. Let's hope they don't expect us to have big guns as well." The Captain rumbled back and already roared orders before interrupting the comm. Tork lowered his gaze back on the radar and saw how their jets dashed against the enemy once more. The throb in his ribcage grew into an agonizing sting and he groaned voicelessly. If the Irkens didn't kill him then this cursed shrapnel splinters in his body would!

The massive frame of the enemy ship approached further but now the _Vengeance_ 's shadow appeared on the radar as well. Yet despite their flagship's own impressive size it was soon clear how this fight would end. All of a sudden Tork realized that he had made a big mistake. The last.

    "Shit." He hissed and reached out his hand for the Chronometer to call back the fighters when the radio cracked again and the Captain contacted him.

    "Tork… that's not the _Vast_." He said soundlessly, his voice breathy with crippling horror. Tork's heart seemed to ponder for a moment whether it should keep beating or not when his commander already went on, "It's Prerk."

It got dead quiet inside the cramped room, only the computer's bleeps tore through the silence. Finally Tork found his voice again.

   " _Prerk_?" he spat stunned. As if they didn't have enough problems already! "What the hell are _they_ doing here?! Do they actually want to flay our remains before we're even dead?"

But the news calmed him a little; Prerk were no Irkens, even if they had apparently come with an entire nest. "Stay close to the shield and wait until they're in reach. Then blast 'em to bits!" he growled and shot a checking glance on the other radar. Their fleet was already deeply entangled in a chaotic fight with the Irkens but it was exactly this disorganized fighting style which had, up to now, never failed to rattle their tightly organized opponents.

The Captain left the channel open and passed Tork's orders on towards his men. After a few tensed minutes he uttered a confused noise that quickly turned into a furious snarl.

    "They're sending a jet… hold on a sec… that's one of ours! What the…"

Tork immediately stepped closer to the main screen and ordered the tech in front of it to zoom on the much smaller object separating from the giant ship and heading straight for the _Vengeance_. The Captain withheld his men. "It's… I think it's _Lightwing_." He muttered and a quick scan confirmed his suspicion.

    "Are you fucking kidding me?!" Tork cussed furiously and equally desperate. So that's what had happened to the Zar'tak, that was the reason he hadn't returned. "Try to contact them. If none of us replies, open fire!" he ordered sharply and waited tensed. This was turning into a disaster!

 The Captain went to hail the fighter, urging the pilot to identify themselves, yet it stayed silent. After the second attempt the commander bellowed a short command and the _Vengeance_ fired at the jet which screw dived down into the void the very second the Captain's shout tore through the silence, completely dodging the canon's projectile before spiraling back on its initial course. Tork blinked for a second, confused, and flinched with a surprised gasp. No pilot could've reacted so quickly, escept for...

"H- hold your fire! That's…"

    "Tork? Can you hear me?"

That voice was probably the last he would have ever expected to come out of the radio and it took multiple painful heartbeats until Tork had managed to get his gaping mouth back under control.

    "J- Jenna?" he breathed aghast and thought at first he had only imagined her voice. For a moment it stayed quiet on the other side again but then she choked out a laugh.

    " _Damn_ it feels good to hear your voice." She uttered and he couldn't help but gasp out relieved.

    "Right back at you, kid! How- how did you… shit, Captain let her pass and escort her to the base!" he barked into his Chronometer and slumped down in his seat. Around him the techs and navigators were whispering at each other confused but also excited.

    "Aye, dammit! What are we supposed to do about the Prerk?" The Captain asked combative but Jenna interrupted him.

    "Don't worry, they're on our side! They're going to wait outside the force field until you're ready to meet them." She assured them and Tork nodded without any further questions. He trusted her.

    "Alright. You have a bunch of things to explain, young lady." He scolded her playfully but she just snorted amused.

    "Just like you, I'm afraid. Give Nemon a heads up, we'll need a MedPod ASAP!" she added and the worry in her voice made the Commander prick up his ears.

    "Are you injured?!" he asked distraught.

    "Not me, but the Zar'tak is in pretty bad shape."

He assured her to immediately send a team of paramedics to the landing field while he quietly laughed to himself and shook his head in disbelief. Typically Jenna; instead of getting rescued she ended up rescuing the guy sent to help her.

    "Cap, keep an eye on those Prerk… just in case." The Commander ordered him as soon as he disconnected with Jenna. Then he jumped from his seat to greet her personally. "Give me and update on how the fight's going down. And tell _Set_ to fucking stop his goddamn kamikaze attacks and report back to me once they're done!"

Ink and Ironhead followed hot on his heel when he left the crammed command central at a run and stepped out into the base camp. The guards' night shift was just relieving their comrades which was why the square around the half dug in command central was filled with people. Tork looked into the tired, battle-weary faces but he couldn't see any signs of fear or even desperation in them yet, only iron grimness. He gave those of them awake enough to return his gaze a respectful nod and made his way through the single squads until they were standing on the bulldozed flight field. Far off in the distance, outside the glistening shield he could spot the battle's explosions but as long as his Chronometer stayed silent it were just the Irkens blowing up… hopefully.

He let Ink hand him his Chronometer and radioed Nemon down in the underground MedBay. The medical superintendent replied surly and slightly rushed, apparently the more severe cases from the last skirmishes were still worrying him. Tork ignored the half growled, half snapped "What?" of his Chief Medical Officer and requested the paramedic team. Then he inhaled audibly and couldn't help a smile from curling his lips when Nemon was already cursing about which idiot had gotten himself shot out of the sky _this_ time.

    "Jenna is back."

Nemon fell silent in an instance. Then the Commander had to hold the Chronometer away from his ear since the Ilenian yelled orders at his assistants, punching something with his fist before simply interrupting the call. But Tork was certain that Nemon had understood what he said. He hadn't seen the doctor this lively since they had aborted the search for Jenna.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Jenna's back and she's brought an army! Time to throw some punches into the Tallest's faces amirite?  
> Wonder how Set's been doing with his waifu gone~ 
> 
> Also hooray for wrestling giant insects! I'd like wrrestling a five meter tall praying mantis *-*


	93. Battle Cry - Pt. 4

  **\- 30 Battle Cry –**

**Part 4**  
  


Impatiently he paced about on the flight field until he finally noticed the signal lights of the three jets nose diving at top speed. The two fighters escorting her pulled up and returned in a wide arch towards the _Vengeance_ but _Lightwing_ kept going and Tork had to force himself not to run towards the jet that twisted elegantly in mid-air and then landed gently in front of him. But when the cockpit's hatch opened and he spotted the brown thatch of hair he ran towards her anyway. Jenna jumped out of her jet and onto the wing, took a quick look around and was already nearly crushed in Tork's embrace as he wrapped his arms around the human, pulling her to him. Both of them broke out in relieved laughter and only when Ink and Ironhead joined them he let go of her to take a closer look at her. His red eyes were glistening with tears which the first Commander was still holding back.

    "Damn, kid, it's really you! And not a hair harmed on you! Although…" he stopped puzzled and squinted his eyes. Jenna sheepishly ran her hand through the short, mussed tangles on her head where once her long mane had been.

    "Yeah, the caretaker's couldn't save all of it… long story." She admitted. Tork immediately noticed the slight echo in her voice and scrutinized her eyes.

    "And you've got Pakrit inside you to cap it all… well then, out with it I think you've put us all on the rack long enough!" he growled but she shook her head and waved at the arriving paramedics.

    "Later, sorry. First I need to take Zar to the MedBay!" she interrupted him and jumped back onto her jet to pull a lifeless, pitch black frame out of the cockpit. Tork had meant to ask her who the heck _Zar_ was but the sight of the Zar'tak made this question obsolete. He waited silently until Jenna had carried the unconscious telepath to the MedPod, instructing the team to take him to the MedBay at once when a thunderous voice boomed across the flight field. Jenna wheeled around at the sound of her name just in time before Nemon almost knocked her over. The Ilenian wept freely, pressing her to his chest and he uttered a real spate of incoherent, sobbed sentences. She let it happen and returned his embrace not any less heartfelt. Then Nemon parted a bit from her and leaned his forehead against hers, one hand buried in her short hair and she smiled, squeezing the hand that had grabbed hers. They both exchanged a few quiet words, Nemon nodded and let go of her very reluctantly to follow the team taking the Zar'tak down underground. Jenna looked after him for a second before she turned back around to Tork, her expression solemn and hard.

    "What happened?" she just asked and the Commander simply nodded in agreement. It was probably more important to get her up to speed on the latest events; _her_ story could wait a little more for now.

    "Well, we continued on our way after you-" he started but she immediately shook her head and quickly stepped up to him.

    "That would take too long. Sorry." She just said and placed a hand behind his head to pull his forehead against hers, closing her eyes. He felt something entering his mind; like something alive Jenna's consciousness broke through the boundaries of his own and briefly oriented itself before she had found his memories of the last ninety cycles and she read them within seconds.

Jenna felt bad for taking him off guard like that but this way there was no hindering barrier she first had to crush to read him. During their journey to Irk she had practiced this method endlessly with the queen who had one of the most impassable minds apart from Lenka and the Meekrob.

She went back in Tork's mind, back to the moment when she had disappeared, saw the mangled corpse of the Kexian lying on an operating table, then Vaka locked up in a cell and went on.

The rebels had arrived on Irk with ten cycles delay and had immediately set up their base on the moon's surface, hidden from the Irkens that inhabited the planet during the armada's and the Tallest's absence. Just like Set had told them the planet wasn't really guarded but defended by a few dangerous, automatic antimatter canons that made a direct assault nearly impossible. Still the rebels soon sent a scout down to the planet's surface: SIR. The robot could enter the capital city unnoticed to spy out their defenses and get an overview over the general situation at hand while the Resistance finished its base of operations, collecting every piece of ammunition and resources they could acquire.

After a few stakeouts from SIR they could finally set their plan into motion: 20 days after their arrival Tork ordered the fighter fleet to attack so that a small team could infiltrate the planet under the cover of the fight. Their target was the Tallest Tower standing right in the center of the city and was distinctively more heavily guarded than the rest of the planet. Although their fleet was able to focus the canon's fire on them the stealth team still lost one of the two transporters before they could even enter the atmosphere and thus almost half of their entire team. Despite the already high losses they pressed on and finally broke into the palace. Fifty fighters were left, Tork and Set not included and they fought their way past the guards, deeper into the giant complex.

At this point Jenna dug deeper and read the fight in all its gruesome details, witnessed every fall, every loss, experienced the sounds, the smell and everything Tork had experienced. With every floor that the rebels advanced the guards grew in numbers and the defenses got even fiercer but no matter how hard they looked, they couldn't find any trace of the _Hive_ or its whereabouts. At the end, being reduced to ten men, they had been forced to retreat and abort the mission completely. They barely escaped the now orderly embattled Irken defenders and made it back to base.

But now the Irkens knew that they were there. Or maybe they had known it all along because not only two cycles the armada arrived at the planet, blocking off any escape route. The rebels fended off the first few attacks bravely, both in space and on the moon's surface but every next advance of the Irken forces pushed them further and further back and claimed more and more victims.

And then the Meekrob intervened. The massive losses and the growing hopelessness of their situation forced them to interfere in order to ensure the survival of the rebels until Jenna's return that they had been certain of until the end. Jenna had to read Tork's memory twice and she shuddered when she saw with his eyes how the being of pure energy rose up over the Resistance's camp and emitted a bright flash of blue light that engulfed the entire moon in a furious shockwave and obliterated the Irken ground squads. She nearly flinched back from his mind as she kept following the memory and realized the Meekrob was about to sacrifice themselves, giving their remaining, incredible power to create the giant force field that had up to now reliably protected the rebels from the Irken attacks, giving up their corporeal form as well. Since then the Irkens had retreated to their planet , frequently starting attacks to destroy the shield.

She withdrew from Tork's mind and stared at him in silent shock. The Commander groaned quietly and rubbed his temples.

    "Please warn me the next time you're about to do this." He grunted and returned her startled glare apologetic. "But I guess that you're now best informed on our current situation, judging from your face. So? You think the Prerk are gonna fight with us?" he asked doubtful and she nodded slowly. She was still completely shaken that the Meekrob had given their life to protect the rebels. She would have to tell Zar…

    "Yes, if I talk to the Queen about what I have seen in your thoughts she won't hesitate to send her fighters to help us. W- where is-", _Set_ , she had wanted to ask but Tork's Chronometer rang and he quickly whipped it out.

    "What's up? Good… yes, send him to the flight field. No, he isn't to attack the Prerk under any circumstances, damn it! Send him to my position, stat!" the Commander hissed and pinched the skin between his eyes with a tired groan. Jenna's dwindling, normalizing senses could faintly feel the pain in him and she wanted to reach out a hand when a big jet nose dived out of the sky behind them and landed with a booming roar in front of them, the hot streams from its engines raising the moon dust and roughing up her hair. Jenna didn't need any Pakrit to know who was in that jet and she waited with her heart pounding for the canopy to open and a giant frame climbed out with the help of shining spider legs, summarily jumping off the scratched fighter.

The crimson and violet armor now adorned a matching helmet that hid his face and Set let it vanish into his suit with a push against the side. Immediately crimson eyes pierced into hers for a second but they were cold and distrusting and her heart failed for a crushing moment when his glare traveled on to Tork immediately and he addressed the Commander.

    "Something _specifi_ c you'd like to know?" he asked annoyed but Tork only shook his head, just as stunned and speechless as Jenna. Set simply grunted, his antennae angrily tore through the air and then he turned around again and jumped back into his jet. With gaping mouth Jenna stared after him, too stupefied to react to Set's indifference. Tork shot her a commiserative glance and sighed downcast while the jet took off and raced skyward.

    "What's with him?" she breathed bewildered and to fight back angry tears. She had _missed_ him, had worried so much about him and couldn't have imagined how he must've felt but she definitely hadn't expected something even close to this. Tork jerked her from her thoughts.

    "It hit him hard, love, worse than I've thought till now. He never gave you up, he raged and insisted on heading out on his own to find you… at least until some time ago when the rest of us had already… uhm…" he went quiet, conscience-stricken, and crossed his arms, "He changed, he got… cold. Yes, I think that fits it best. Cold and _reckless_ , especially towards his own life. Every new attack he is the first to throw himself at the Irkens and the last to return. He secludes himself if he's not fighting and we had to keep him from attacking the armada on his own. I thought seeing you again, and alive, would make him snap out of it but… I admit I haven't expected something like this. I'm sorry kid."

    "Where is he going?" she asked worried and glimpsed at her own jet. Tork shrugged.

    "Beats me, mostly he broods somewhere on the moon… he rarely spends any time with the rest of us, only to fend of the next wave or to drill our remaining ground forces until they can barely stand. Oh no you don't…" in a wink he grabbed her arm just as she wanted to run to her jet and follow Set. Jenna didn't protest, she was still too shocked by his reaction and allowed Tork to lead her back to the base while the rail lights already faded in the distance - but it hurt; more than anything she felt pain inside her and frustration.

    "Tork, please, I have to-" she tried feebly but the Commander shook his head.

    "You have to let Nemon examine you first of all before I will let you go anywhere else! Prerk are known for carrying all kinds of interstellar parasites inside them and I can't risk my men getting carried off by sunlice. Don't worry, Set will come back the second he fully grasps that you're really back. Ink, take her down to the MedBay as discretely as possible, we can't have folk clapping her on the back before she has been in quarantine, and given the current state we're all in at the moment that would be the first thing they do upon seeing her back from the dead. Off with you." He ordered his bodyguards and went back to the Command Center himself to gather the rest of the Commanders and officers of the council to discuss how and when they should launch another assault on the Tallest Tower with Jenna. Because although they hadn't found anything during their first attack he was still convinced the _Hive_ had to be hidden somewhere beneath the palace.

 

Jenna followed Ink the Vortian and Ironhead the Steelhunter to a heavily secured entrance located at the end of a tunnel, dug sloping into the moon. She had seen the two guards before, standing watch in front of the door to the cell Tork had interrogated invader Spleen in and she remembered her fear, her uncertainty and the pressing urge to get to know what had happened to Set after she had left him drugged on his ship. Now, half an eternity later she suddenly felt the same way.

Tork's guards took her quickly and most of all unnoticed deeper into the improvised base and hurried her past the rebels coming their way who could barely cast her a surprised glace before Ironhead already shielded her from their eyes with his massive back. Since none of them said a word Jenna had enough time to look around, even though there wasn't really much to see. The corridors driven into the rock had been dug with heavy  machines and supported with steel beams that had fluorescent lights attached to them. Some of the tunnels branching off from the main passageway ended in dark rooms used for storage while others were sealed off with actual doors. They stopped in just one of those doors and Ink took his Chronometer to open it. The room behind it was so brightly lit that Jenna had to squint her eyes and the strong smell off disinfectant hit her still sensitive nose with full force.

The MedBay was filled, assistants ran about and didn't pay them much attention as they crossed the main area to get to the back part of the station.

Jenna had to tear herself away from the sight of all the wounded and already picked up a familiar voice giving unusually stern orders. Without heeding Ironhead's reluctant grunt she shoved past Ink and walked straight up to Reliat who stood in the middle of the room, just handing a datapad back to one of his colleagues with a nod, then looking up to meet her gaze. For a moment he just stared at her before he snapped his four eyes open and froze.

    "Jenna?"

The bewilderment on his brown face turned into realization and then she was already there and hugged him closely. He returned the embrace slowly, almost carefully as if he feared she was only an illusion. When Jenna parted from him Reliat still hadn't caught himself and just kept staring at her but at least he had found his voice again. "It's really you! But- but how…" he stammered dazed and then uttered a confused laugh. "Oh my god you're alive!" Now he embraced her back, drew her closer and even lifted her off the ground. But before they both could burst out in joy of their reunion Ink stepped up next to Jenna and pulled her away from the Ilenian.

    "Slow down now, first you've gotta get yourself checked, remember?" the Vortian reminded her but Jenna couldn't help but notice a relieved expression on his face that even had a little hope inside it. She nodded apologizing and spread her arms apart.

    "He's right; Tork said you need to delouse me." She joked drily and followed Reliat as he waved her into an empty examination room with a laboratory. Ink and Ironhead positioned themselves next to the door, outside, and once it had closed behind them and they were alone Reliat quickly whipped out his Chronometer, typed in a short message and put it back into his lab-coat pocket before he turned around to her and scrunched his nasal area with the slit-shaped nostrils.

     "Sorry I'm saying it like this but… you smell like you've spent the last 90 cycles in a Prerk nest." He commented and raised two eyebrows when she broke out into laughter. At his confused expression Jenna laughed only louder and wiped a tear from the corner of her eye.

    "You have no idea how right you are." She sighed and raised her hands. "I actually was with the Prerk. To be honest I even brought them along."

Now Reliat looked at her earnestly distraught but she put him of and peeled out of her stiff, smelling overall she had been wearing the last ten cycles. "Don't worry, they're on our side and are going to help us. I'm like an unofficial queen to them. But I'd like to wait with my story until… until everyone's here. Meaning Nemon, Tork and Car." She said and added Set in her thoughts though she would prefer talking to him in private, if he showed up. She didn't really share Tork's confidence concerning the ex-invader.

Reliat shook his head in disbelief and got to examine her and take samples from her hair, skin and blood.

    "Okay, now I'm not surprised anymore that the Commander wants me to check you thoroughly… so the Prerk found you and… what, made you their queen?" he asked curious and she sighed internally. During the examination she told him what had happened , where she had woken up and how she had finally gotten here. Reliat let her talk, only interrupting her now and then with shocked noises or other interjections. When she told him about her fight against the queen he was so enthralled for a moment that he completely forgot the samples under the microscope and simply listened to her with open mouth. At the end of her story Jenna tugged on the short strands falling into her face.

    "Well and when the caretaker's started grooming me, which is actually only reserved for the queen, they quickly realized that my hair had been glued together by the slime… and they just bit it off until they could untangle it. Hence the wild look, I admit it still takes me some getting used to." She confessed sad and blew against a particularly annoying lock. Reliat watched her and nodded understandingly.

    "That must've been horrible for you… not knowing whether we're still alive or already dead…" he said quietly and she nodded. "Have you… have you seen Set, yet?" he went on cautiously and suddenly she couldn't keep back the tears anymore and sobbed. Immediately Reliat rushed to her side and rubbed her shoulders. "I'm sorry." She heard him whisper and at the same time the sound of the door sliding back. At the high clacking sound she recognized the footsteps of a Vortian and looked up. Car returned her look with wide eyes. She didn't say anything, just ran to her and wrapped her arms around her, covering her head with kisses and pressing her to her chest until she returned the embrace and clung to Car's coat. Finally she parted from Jenna and angrily wiped the tears from her cheeks.

    "You… you… you! You better not freak me out like that ever again!" she gasped out choked up and laughed relieved. "I swear, one of these days I'm gonna get a heart attack because of you!"

Of course she had to tell Car the whole story as well now and the Vortian listened even more dignified than Reliat. But eventually the Ilenian had finished his screening and frowned.

    "You really have a few parasites and microorganisms on you. I'm afraid we'll have to keep you in quarantine until tomorrow and administer a few antibiotics to get rid of them. Sorry." He said deploring but she shrugged. It was only important that she was here and that none of her friends had died. Except for the Meekrob…

          

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay and the relatively short chapter but the last two weeks were stressful and I couldn't really wrap my head around this chapter >.


	94. Ultimatum

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **I've decided to change the updates to every second Sunday** because we are in the final stages of this story and I want to have enough time for planning each chapter (which will probably get a bit longer) and making the final plot realistic while still maintaining top quality for you guys!

### \- 31 Ultimatum –

_Fourteen hours later – Irk – Moon_

Set felt terribly confused. And guilty. And angry.

He was sitting on a small rock, the shattered remains of an asteroid impact on the moon’s surface, and stared unswervingly at the planet above him that glistened metallically in the light of its orbited star, visible to the naked eye even from here.

Somewhere up there he had been…

His thoughts digressed and he squinted his eyes growling while the two concepts battled in his brain. Had he been _born_ somewhere up there or _hatched_? The part of his mind that had up to now absorbed and internalized more and more of the human language insisted he must’ve been born while the deeper, Irken part of his self was convinced he had simply hatched in the smeetery. Technically speaking he had indeed hatched but all of a sudden this term seemed artificial to him and just not right! Lifeforms didn’t hatch, except for those species that laid eggs but even those eggs had to be lain by _someone_. He knew that Ilenians hatched from eggs, but they did this in the womb of their…

Again he stopped and allowed the human word to pass his mind: mother. From Jenna’s memories he knew more or less what a mother was and, compared to the other aliens he knew of, this concept seemed to be vastly spread throughout the galaxy. Safe for his species. Set could recall every moment after he had first opened his eyes and taken his first breath, right after a vicious electrical shock had woken him and not a second later a robotic voice had rasped: _Welcome to life, Irken child, report for duty_. He had felt affection towards this metal arm that had brought him to life, had it been the first thing he had seen, but a moment later the Pak on his back had finished booting up itself, overwhelming his brain with knowledge and other impressions that stuck in his mind ever since, wiping away the feeling of affection. The knowledge of his people’s history – although nothing of this information contained anything about the _Hive_ – language, script and the basic concepts of their technology. And the fact that he was here for the sole purpose of extending the Empire’s territory and destroy its enemies.

He had seen only few newborn of other species until now and, honestly, they hadn’t interested him at all but the tiny Ilenian Jenna had helped bring into this world had both fascinated and scared him. He could neither speak nor do anything else except drooling and gurgling and sleeping. Lots of that. When he had seen the little one in the MedBay one time his eyes had nearly popped out of his head and he had imagined Nemon and Reliat, how they must’ve been just as small and completely helpless in the beginning, apparently also staying like this for more than a year! He suddenly felt a deep respect towards these aliens that they had managed to defy the Irkens for this long, despite their inferior way of reproduction. Then he had tried to imagine what it would have been like if he and Jenna had a child of their own, provided they weren’t so entirely different and he wasn’t sterile.

The invader returned to his initial thoughts, repelled by the mental image of holding a smeet in his hands that had been born naturally and was destined to die only ten minutes later without a Pak to provide it life.   

The familiar sight of the planet had torn him out of his confusion, his uncertainty and the suspicion. And the blame and anger at himself and the Tallest and the _Hive_. Now he saw the hurt look before his eyes again she had given him and the guilt grew anew inside him. But… was it really her?

 _Playback of the last unanswered message_ – He ordered the interface of his Pak and flinched involuntarily at the sound of the familiar, cold voice.

    _“Give it up, Set. We know that the Meekrob’s shield is growing weaker and that it’s just a matter of time until it has completely dissolved and the armada will wipe you despicable, pathetic rebels out. It’s not too late for you. If you surrender we will welcome you back to our ranks. You’ll get recoded and even your old status back. We would even allow you to keep your memory… unless you want it erased by your own choice. Oh and another thing: you probably still think you have something worth fighting for but I’m afraid I have to disappoint you.”,_ at this point Red’s voice grew strangely soft and even lost a bit of its spite. _“We’ve found your human. All alone and abandoned by your rebel friends. Don’t worry, she didn’t have to suffer. Not that long anyway. I_ would _send you her head but that stupid force field is in my way. So, think about if you want to stay on the loser side or rather prefer a fresh start on the winning team; our offer’s still standing. Surrender, turn the rebels in and return to where you belong, invader!”_

Gnashing his teeth he deleted that message just like the nearly three hundred before it. During every new attack the Irken pilots would spam the memory of his Pak with this message, over and over, often several at once. After the first he had snorted scornfully and shrugged it off as another lie from the Tallest, a trick to deceive him. But after the fifth he had already felt more and more doubt nagging inside him. There was no way the Tallest would’ve been able to know about Jenna’s disappearance otherwise if not by finding her adrift in space. The Zar'tak was still missing and every new cycle without a single sign of her had made his confidence crumble and finally fade away.

He couldn’t remember when he had started to believe Red and write Jenna off like the others had, captured and killed by the Tallest. Set had always thought that the news of her death would send him into an unstoppable frenzy of rage and thirst for revenge, and for a while he had indeed made secret plans to fly up there and kill his former leaders all by himself but now he just felt empty, numb and powerless. Everything seemed pointless all of a sudden, why should he keep on living? He would never see her again and without a way past the armada they would all be dead sooner or later.

And then he had seen her standing next to Tork, like something from a dream, a hallucination of his grieving mind. At first he hadn’t recognized her, hadn’t wanted to recognize her with this grime-stained overall and her short hair but when he had looked into her eyes realization had hit him like a physical punch. Yet instead of feeling relief or joy he had found himself reacting with distrust and a strange hesitation. How had she gotten here? How could she have possibly survived this long in space? Red’s message wouldn’t leave his mind and an inner voice warned him to be cautious.

Was it taking the Tallest too long to wait for the shield to just wear off? Had they created a clone of Jenna to fool the rebels and destroy them from within? Cloning was extremely difficult and even more expensive, admittedly, but it was possible. After all the entirety of Irk’s population had been _created_ out of one gene pool.

So, was this creature only superficially Jenna and in reality a creation of the Tallest to fool him even further?

Set looked down on his metal hand in which he held her iPod, the earbuds wrapped around his antennae. He stared at the lit up display and called up a specific song with a few practiced keystrokes. He knew every single track on the small device by now and he still would return to this one. With his other hand he felt for the Dilamite crystal on the chain around his neck he had given her and that was, like her other stuff, the only thing he had left of her. If this Jenna was indeed the real one… then he knew how he would find out the truth. At least he was hoping that it would work. He didn’t know much about cloning. Was it even possible to clone something of a being’s personality? Or their memories?

With an angry hiss the Irken stood up from his spot and marched over to his jet with long strides. In any case, he couldn’t wait any longer, he needed the answers _now_ or he would lose his mind!

   
  
  


200.000 miles away, almighty Tallest Red stared at the stellar map in the Tallest Tower’s command center and felt his eyelid twitching in anger and a dull headache spreading behind his eyes that quickly crept down to the healed, padded wound on his back right above the Pak and continued to throb there. The view of the map was turned on the moon of Irk and what had appeared behind it almost a cycle ago. The very thing that was causing his headache.

    “I’m just telling you; how the hell would the rebels have been able to even contact the _Prerk_?! Even we couldn’t find them!” Purple ranted on just now and jerked Red from his silent staring. He shook his head reluctantly and bared his teeth into an irritated snarl, his antennae cutting through the air with an angry whip.

    “Wasn’t the rebels. At least I don’t think so. What I think is that someone _lead_ them to the rebels, maybe it was the Meekrob before he blew himself up and created this stupid force field…” he pondered aloud and, as if in confirmation of what he had said, suddenly a red haze covered his eyes and he froze reverent. Purple had noticed it as well and quickly shooed the few guards and service drones outside before closing the door to the command center and then float back to his hatch twin who had closed his eyes, patiently waiting for the _Hive_ to talk to them.

The two leaders of the armada trembled in unison when finally the presence of their true leader manifested in their minds through the Nexus like something alive. But they soon noticed that something was different. The usually imperious calmness of the _Hive_ was now streaked by excitement and something like silent delight. When he finally spoke they realized why their liege was so agitated, even though it was only one sentence before he already withdrew from the Nexus again.

_She is here._

Red was the first to open his eyes and he glared at Purple in unspoken fury. His partner only gulped with wide eyes and they just looked at each other for a second. It had been the _Hive_ himself who had told them countless cycles ago that the human had been separated from the rebels, the signal of the Scouts inside her brain had apparently grown weaker, although it had been getting stronger and clearer continuously up to this point, and then completely left his reach. He had ordered them to return to Irk immediately and send out multiple squads of Enforcers to look for her in the direction the signal had vanished into. The circumstance that their leader was suddenly so obsessed with the human unsettled the Tallest but they would never dare to doubt the decisions of the _Hive_ or his motives.

And now she had suddenly reappeared? After all their Enforcers had failed to find her? Red felt a suspicion creeping up on him.

    “I think I know now _who_ lead the Prerk here.” He growled with uncontained hatred and stared at the moon again as if he could blow it up with his glare alone. Purple nodded with furrowed brows and groaned quietly.

    “Figures… See I told you from the start we should’ve killed her immediately! We shouldn’t have let her get away with talking to us like that back when she was still on Set’s ship! Then we wouldn’t be in this damn mess and already done with Operation Impending Doom 2 _and_ we wouldn’t have lost our flagship and two decades worth of snacks!!” His hatch twin cursed unrestrained and pointed accusingly at the stellar map. Red stopped him with a wave of his hand and rolled his eyes.

    “Ya, ya, ya, I get it, it’s all _my_ fault and you’re totally not to blame, right.” He hissed back and narrowed his red eyes into small slits. “Actually I should punch you for doubting the armada or _him_.” He added menacingly and couldn’t hide a grin when Purple hissed scornfully.

    “Oh yeah? Try me! We’ll see who ends up writhing on the floor this time, begging for mercy.”

A tempting thought but now was not the time to indulge. If the situation wasn’t so dire he would’ve challenged Purple any time just to inevitably end up in bed with him but that would have to wait for now. The _Hive_ had just now sent new instructions to their Paks and they had to take care of their next steps. Red skimmed the few lines of orders and grinned viciously. _That’ll turn out even better than I hoped it would_ , he thought with evil glee and turned to Purple to talk things through with him.

   
  


Jenna jerked from her sleep and gasped startled. Confused and disoriented she looked around in the darkness and relaxed again when she recognized the walls and machines of the improvised quarantine room. Groaning she sank back on the hard pallet and wrapped the thin blanket around her body she had thrashed off during her dream. She was shivering from cold but also the aftermath of her nightmare. Beside her she heard a quiet rustling, then five pale green eyes illuminated the darkness in front of her face and she looked at the Zar'tak silent, an apologetic expression on her face. He stared back just as quietly, it wasn’t the first time she had torn him from his sleep by another vision. Like back on the rebels’ planet she was sending her dreams uncontrolled into every direction, apparently the control the Prerk queen had talked about only referred to not _losing_ it. Otherwise Jenna had no power about her visions, whether when they would occur nor if she was sending them or not.

    “I’m sorry.” She whispered. He didn’t need to ask her what she had dreamt of, he had seen it himself again, in every little, gruesome detail. Zar trembled next to her. The circumstance that they were lying right next to each other on their pallets, connected to an infusion machine, seemed to only deepen the transfer of her dreams. But the proximity had the nice side effect, besides the fact that they had become so close by now, that he didn’t even have to build up the mental contact anymore each time they wanted to talk and it felt more like a normal conversation now.

    _“It’s alright, I can’t sleep anyway.”_ He returned and his eyes blinked lazily. Jenna knew he was lying. Since their arrival on the moon he hadn’t done anything _besides_ sleeping. Nemon had told him as sparingly as possible that his sovereign had sacrificed themselves in order to protect the rebels with their shield but when she had watched his reaction she had realized that he had already known it from the start. Since then he had gone over to sleep through the rest of the day and most of the night until now and despite the cautious care of the doctors he was getting weaker still.

She frowned and extended a hand for him to grab one of his four paws. The cannula in the crook of her arm stung uncomfortably and she hoped the antibiotics would soon have killed all the parasites inside them so that they could get out of here.

Of course the medical staff had put Zar in quarantine with her as soon as he was stable again, because despite his exotic anatomy he was infested by the parasites as well. She had started to just call him Zar after she had asked him for his name back on the Prerk ship and he had only blinked at her in confusion. Apparently the concept of names was either unknown to the Meekrob or obsolete but Jenna insisted on giving him a name with the explanation that humans needed a name for everything they felt attached to.

    “They wouldn’t want you to give yourself up.” She breathed quietly and felt the paw in her hand tensing. “I know, I don’t have any idea what your connection was like but… _I_ don’t want you to give yourself up, okay? We need you, Zar.” She continued and would’ve liked to have some more Pakrit inside her veins to simply _send_ her emotions than haltingly trying to explain them somehow. To her surprise he smiled softly.

    _“You know… you’re not all wrong. The part of them that is still within me really tries urging me to carry on. But right now I just want to embrace this part inside me and mourn the rest of them.”_ He admitted unashamed and sighed quietly. _“I know you only want to help me… and I thank you for that. But it takes time to get over the loss of someone you have been bound to all your life. In mind and soul alike. A servant normally only lives as long as his sovereign and dies with them, as long as they’re not melded. I was separated from my sovereign when they died and couldn’t follow them. And they couldn’t die entirely because of the part of energy that was already melded with me. The Meekrob knew that they would be born again after their death, in another galaxy, yet only if their entire energy is given back to the cosmos. My sovereign… they will only then be born again when I die and give my part of their energy back. I never swore an oath to serve my sovereign, it is my very nature, I don’t even need to think about it. My last task was to find you and bring you back. That I did. Well, more or less.”_ He japed dryly and considered her with a wink. Jenna smiled back.

Then he looked at something in the distance and his jaws opened a bit as if he wanted to talk. Instead he carried on in her mind.

    _“Now I only have one objective left: Give their energy back so they can be born again. But every time I try to die…”_

    “Woah, hold on a sec, you were trying to kill yourself?!” Jenna asked shocked, too loud in the dark room, and sat up abruptly. With big, aghast eyes she stared down at the Zar’tak whose green eyes returned her gaze surprised. “But… I was with you the entire time, I would’ve noticed it if you-“

He nodded understandingly and then shook his head.

    _“I have other means to end my life. With my powers I can cause my organs to fail or a clot of blood to form in my brain… but every time I tried this the part of their energy heals me. Apparently… it would seem my sovereign doesn’t want me to give their energy back just now. But I don’t know why, what is there left for me to do?”_

The question felt desperate in her thoughts and confused. Jenna sank back on her side and gave him a sad look. How did it have to feel for someone to not know their purpose, their destiny when their entire life had been filled with a sense and tasks to fulfill? When someone who had served all his life was suddenly left without a master?

She gently rubbed his hand and tried to smile.

    “I’m sure your sovereign knew you would still have to play a part in all of this. They just couldn’t tell you before they left.” She whispered soothing and watched how his haunted eyes slowly settled. For a while they just kept looking at each other and Jenna knew that he was thinking. Then he spoke to her again, quiet, concern in the mental voice.

    _“Do you think it knows you’re here?”_

She knew what he was talking about. She nodded.

    “You saw the dream. It doesn’t restrict itself to only showing me _what_ it plans to do anymore but rather _when_. It knows exactly how long the shield will hold up and it knows I’m here… you heard the threat, right?” she asked hushed and felt her throat constricting. Zar nodded.

    _“I did… but believe me, the rebels won’t let you surrender to the Irkens just to save their lives. I won’t allow it, the queen won’t allow it and the Irken and the others much less so.”_ He scrutinized her searchingly and growled quietly. _“Don’t tell me you believe it? That it will spare them if you hand yourself in voluntarily?!”_ he chased it up inquiringly and she hesitated briefly before finally shaking her head.

    “No… we have to assume that the _Hive_ is ultimately evil. It only has its own survival and that of the Irken Empire in mind, it would never pass up a golden opportunity to destroy the last, real enemies of the Irkens in this galaxy no matter if I give up and order the Resistance to leave Irk or not. But… what if I _can_ save them? I could fill up on Pakrit and have them take me to it and then…” she suddenly fell silent. Outside in the hallway they heard voices and Zar had sat up alerted. 

Jenna was more surprised by his reaction than really the people arguing in the hallway in the middle of the night; he had until now only let everything wash over him more or less lethargically. Seeing the telepath this awake now worried her and she turned towards the door.

“Do you know who it is?” she mumbled tensed and he growled as an answer. The voices outside got louder, then they suddenly broke off and someone muttered something before the door to quarantine opened with a hiss and a pale ray of light fell inside. Jenna sat up herself now when a big shadow blocked out the light again just as a giant figure edged through the gap and closed the door. Only her breath was heard in the following silence and the humming of the machines.

She wasn’t surprised to see him even though she hadn’t expected him to show up just yet. Although it was unmistakably Set she felt her own tension all too clearly and didn’t dare to move. The Zar’tak seemed to feel the same way. Jenna had told him about Set’s weird behavior earlier and even the telepath couldn’t make sense of it.

Nobody said a word. The flashing of his biomechanical arm lit up the room thus far she was able to make out his face. He looked determined, a little too determined for her taste and she already braced herself for an attack. But then he just walked up to her and sank down on his knees in front of her pallet. In the faint light of his metal arm his eyes looked like two dark red crystals piercing into hers. Jenna’s heart pounded anxiously in her chest while he scrutinized her hard and her palms suddenly got wet from cold sweat.

    _“What is he up to?”_ she heard Zar mutter in her mind and would’ve loved to shake her head to tell him that she had no fucking idea when Set suddenly shot forward and grabbed her wrist. A choked gasp left her chest and she wanted to jerk her left arm back in start but his grasp was unyielding when he painfully turned her forearm up to expose the Irken slave brand, deformed by scars. Focused he bent over it, studying her wrist. He let a metal finger run over every single one of the scarred cuts and even looked for the older wound where she had cut her wrist on the cables he had bound her with back on his ship.

When he pulled the thin gown over her shoulder to uncover the scars under her right collarbone Jenna suddenly realized why he was doing this and her breath stopped altogether.

_He thinks I’m not real, that I’m a clone or something!_

She looked up and right into his eyes.

    “S-Set… I know what you’re thinking-“, she tried but he bared his teeth at her and continued inspecting every single scar she had gotten over the time they’d spent together.

    “Do you now?” the invader muttered quietly and didn’t pay the Zar’tak any attention when he raised himself up on his pallet and his eyes flared up in their eerie green glow.

    _“Listen to me, she is the real one! I followed her all the way to the Prerk, I even saw the cryo-pod she was in!”_ Zar implored him but that still didn’t seem to convince the Irken. Jenna closed her eyes when Set sat up to inspect the fine scars covering her right eye and she raised a hand to grab his shoulder.

    “Read my thoughts.” She whispered and that made him freeze finally. “Use the Mnemograph on me and read my memories, I’m begging you!”

Set slowly drew back from her and she heard his Pak open.

    “The real Jenna never would’ve allowed me to use it on her ever again…” he said quietly.  

          

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaah it's been too long since I left you with a nasty cliffhanger! I've had some trouble coming up with the right title for this chapter, sorry for keeping you guys on the hooks so long!
> 
> As I said above, updates will now be pushed back to every **second Sunday** hope you're okay with this!   
>  Thank you guys so much for staying with me through this story, you have no idea how much this means to me, getting so much feedback and love for an Invader Zim fanfiction that has so many OCs in it and barely any Zim |'D


	95. Ultimatum - Pt. 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter will be up on the 4th of September!! *fingers crossed*

### \- 31 Ultimatum –

****  
**Part 2**   
  


  
Jenna saw the metallic shine behind Set and held her breath in start, but before he was able to do anything else there was a green flash of light and she had the short, sickening feeling of falling inside her guts. When she opened her eyes again she was suddenly sitting behind the Zar’tak on his own stretcher. The telepath had risen to his full height and stretched out his four arms to the sides as if to shield her from Set who was still kneeling in front of her pallet, glaring angrily at the black alien. Only now Jenna realized that Zar had teleported her.

    _“I won’t let you hurt her!”_ he hissed in their heads and now an actual growl ripped from his chest as he opened his jaws, baring rows over rows of long, sharp teeth. All his lethargy seemed blown away when he stared at Set out of glowing eyes until he finally rose himself, towering over the smaller alien, his metal hand clenched into a tight fist to keep his rage in check.

    “You dare to talk to me like that… you were supposed to get her back… instead you let yourself get captured by the Prerk as I heard.” He snapped furious and wanted to shove the Zar’tak aside but the sudden green glow around him made the Irken recoil.

    _“Almost ironic coming from you, invader. Just so you know; it took the entire hive to take me down and not just a single crew.”_ Zar spat back and Jenna saw with wide eyes how Set flinched caught, screwing his mouth to bare his teeth himself. But the Zar’taks’ composure was unmistakable and the determination with which he guarded her seemed adamant. _“Go, invader. You wouldn’t survive a real fight against me but I would spare you for Jenna’s sake alone.”_

Set looked over the other alien’s shoulder down on Jenna and regarded her with a look that she couldn’t quite read. But then he wheeled around without another word and left the quarantine area. Only when his angry steps had subsided Zar relaxed notably and turned around to her.

    _“Are you alright?”_ he asked honestly concerned and she nodded quickly, though her real emotions must have been visible on her face because he sank down before the pallet and reached out one of his arms to rub her shoulder that was covered in goosebumps but not   
from the temperature in the small room.

    “He’s lost his mind…” Jenna mumbled shaken but to her surprise the Zar’tak shook his head firmly.

    _“He is very upset, confused and uncertain. Your loss almost made him mad even before I set out to find you but I don’t sense any sign of a real psychosis in him.”_ He tried to calm her but now Jenna gave him a confused stare.

    “I thought you couldn’t read minds?” she asked baffled and he gave her a reptilian lopsided sneer.

    _“That was the case before I was given my sovereign’s energy. With its power I also gained a bit of their abilities. How else do you think would I have been able to find you on my own, five parsec* away from the_ Rebellion _?”_ Then his gaze turned scrutinizing and he looked her over once more. _“Are you sure you’re feeling alright? That was the first time I teleported somebody else who is made of flesh and bones, to be honest…”_ he admitted nervously and she nodded.

    “I do feel a little sick but otherwise I didn’t really feel anything else.” She assured him and rubbed her hands over her face, tired. “How the hell am I supposed to convince Set that it’s really me? Should I perhaps reiterate everything that has happened since he abducted me or would that make him even more suspicious? I mean, where the hell did he even get that idea?!”

Zar swayed his big head from one side to the other.

    _“Well, who could possibly want him to believe something like that?”_ he asked in return and shot her a telling glance; Jenna trembled in anger when she caught his drift and of course that was the only answer that made any sense.

    “Those bastards!” she growled suppressed and doubled her fists. She wasn’t sure if the removal of the transmitter from Set’s Pak had also rendered any form of communication with the armada impossible but she immediately scrapped that thought. Zim had told her back then that an entirely other transmitter was used for communications than the one he had removed from the Pak. So that would explain why Tork didn’t have any idea as of why Set was reacting like this; if the Tallest had sent the message of her death directly to his Pak, the rebels probably wouldn’t have noticed anything if he hadn’t told them about it.

The Zar’tak was watching her still and she could see by the look on his face that he was sensing her anger, but other than in the MedBay, where she had nearly lost control again, he stayed completely calm. “So it really is over, huh?” she asked out of the blue and he tilted his head to the side.

    _“I’m not entirely sure what you mean.”_ He confessed and she pointed at herself.

    “That I don’t lose control anymore. You told me before that you had felt it in my blood moments before I snapped and Set had to catch me. And now you seem totally calm.” She explained and he gave her a nod.

    _“Ah, I see. I think so, yes. I can still feel your anger but there is not reaction towards it from the Scouts. They are still inside you and when you dream I can feel their impulses growing as before but apparently they can’t hijack your neural cells anymore to take over your mind. It really is astonishing.”_

Jenna didn’t find that astonishing at all but rather _concerning_. What had happened when she drank that invader’s blood? She could still faintly remember the pain and trembled at the thought; she had felt like her head would burst and even hours after her fight with the queen the terrible headaches stayed despite the Pakrit she had taken. Yet at least the Pakrit had at least given her a way to get some insights on what was happening inside her body and she had realized with surprise that a great amount of phagocytes had entered her subarachnoid space**, doing _something_ to the scouts. Though they definitely hadn’t destroyed them, otherwise Zar probably wouldn’t be able to sense them anymore.

She decided to wait for Nemon with all her questions. He would thoroughly check her either way as soon as he would be able to get close to her without having to fear to get infested by the parasites as well. Car and Reliat, as well as Tork and Nemon himself, had all taken a high dose of antibiotics right after their contact with Jenna and they were fine, but since she and Zar had been exposed to the Prerk for a longer time their infection was a bit harder to fight. Jenna had thought it wiser not to ask Reliat what kind of parasites he had found exactly and, except for the filth, she was feeling fine.

Lost in thoughts she ran her fingers through her matchstick long hair. She had felt a terrible sting in her chest when the caretakers had just started chopping her long mane into pieces but at least her hair would grow back over time.

The Zar’tak had eyed her and chuckled quietly.

    _“Don’t worry, it doesn’t look as bad as you might think.”_ He commented and she flinched involuntarily before shooting him a half lowering, half amused glare.

    “Hey, cut it out!” He was able to read what she meant with that why she didn’t go into much more details what he was supposed to cut out and in turn the telepath smirked. Jenna could’ve sworn that he was actually enjoying his new powers. “We should try to get a bit more rest, I’m sure we won’t get an opportunity that good again in quite some time.” She added instead and already sank back on her side, her head bedded onto her forearm and her other arm tightly wrapped around her. When she also drew her knees to her chest, curling up more, she heard the Zar’tak hissing under his breath.

    _“Don’t be afraid… maybe my sovereign knew something like that would happen and kept me alive to protect you. So I will watch over your sleep.”_ He asserted but she didn’t reply anything, only kept repeating a mantra inside her mind until she fell asleep.

_Set would never hurt me._

   
  


Someone woke her a few hours later with a gentle shaking on her shoulder and Jenna started from her sleep. Four big, red-brown striped eyes looked down on her fondly and the deeply lined face unbent visibly when she opened her eyes fully. She returned his smile and had a good yawn behind her hand but quickly screwed her face. She was still smelling absolutely horrible even after the chemical disinfectant shower Reliat had rushed her through before putting her in the quarantine room. And her morning breath made everything even worse.

Nemon didn’t seem bothered by any of that, he was just placing a palm onto her neck and slightly closed his eyes in concentration. After a few second he exhaled relieved.

    “You’re alright.” The Ilenian simply said and now Jenna sat up confused when he pulled his hand back to clasp it over his mouth, his eyes clenched shut tightly, and a single tear streamed from the corner of his eye. Insecure about his upset state Jenna just placed a hand on his shoulder and drew him close to hug him.

    “Yes, Nemon, I’m alright. And I’m so, so happy to see you.” She replied quietly, nestling her face against his shoulder, glad for some real affection after Set had rejected her so coldly. Nemon wrapped his arms around her and forgot for a moment that he was actually here as her doctor.

    “I thought… I thought I had lost you as well. Living through all of this again after Elis…” he halted and she just nodded quickly and pulled him even closer. It must’ve been terrible for him, the deep new creases around his mouth and between his eyes were speaking volumes on their own.

Nemon cleared his throat hoarsely and parted from her to quickly check the instruments and machines she and Zar were still connected to. The telepath was already sitting upright on his pallet, watching them silent. He didn’t seem to have anything to add for a change and Jenna already knew that Nemon was only inspecting the infusion-machines to compose himself again; if they were still contagious he wouldn’t be here.

 She hesitated for a second before she addressed what was preying on her mind:

    “Nemon? Did- did Tork tell you what happened on the flight field yesterday?” she asked carefully and the Ilenian jerked around with an angry expression on his face.

    “Indeed, and the Zar’tak already told me what took place here during the night! I can tell you I’m more than disappointed, but also very concerned, by Set’s behavior! Had I known sooner that he would react to you in this way I would’ve told Tork to put him under surveillance. How can he seriously believe that you are not real?! First of all you’re no robot, I could personally assure myself of that and even though cloning is possible, nobody, not even the Meekrob, ever managed to create a clone with even nearly the same memories or personality traits as the original! As soon as I’m done with your examination I will subject him to a psychological analyzation!” he fulminated on until Jenna grabbed his hand and interrupted his ranting. Nemon looked down on her expectantly.

    “Nemon… I’m pretty sure that the Tallest have a hand in this. They must’ve somehow talked Set into believing that I am really dead, there is no other explanation why he would immediately think I am not real even though I’m standing in front of him in the flesh! In the night he looked me over for every single scar on my skin and I am certain I’ll just have to talk to him to prove that it’s really me. Loosing me must’ve been just as traumatic for him as it was for you, if not worse. We have to help him snap out of this!” she said firmly and watched Nemon’s angry features relaxing while he shook his head slowly.

    “Of course you’re right… I am astonished how you can still put others before your own sake after all you’ve been through. No clone in the universe could even remotely replace you.”

He pulled the infusion cannulas out of her arm and pointed at the door with a nod. “You two are now officially parasite-free and can move freely throughout the base. Jenna, I think I’m guessing right when I say you probably first want to take a shower in peace before Tork puts you to the task again. You’ve been through enough the last couple… the last _hundred_ cycles, I’m sure, so the frontlines can wait for another one. I already talked to Car this morning, she will show you around and get you back to the MedBay later on so I can get you checked through. By the way; the Zar’tak told me what happened in the Prerk nest.” He sighed quietly and scrutinized her, “I assume you didn’t really had a choice but to drink the invader’s blood… yet I don’t know if it wasn’t just pure luck that you stayed alive and in such great condition considering what else could’ve happened, was _supposed_ to happen actually. But we’ll talk about this later, first you go see Car and spend some time together. I’ll page you once we can start the examination.”

At first Jenna wanted to nod in agreement, but then she remembered that she didn’t have her Chronometer.

    “Yeah, that reminds me: where exactly did my stuff end up in all of this? My armor, the Chronometer and all the stuff I brought with me.” She asked and now Nemon’s eyes widened in realization and he rubbed his chin.

    “Ah, shoot, I completely forgot… um, I’m afraid Set took everything after we arrived here. I better accompany you then, I don’t want you and Car to meet with him alone, not when he is in such a labile state.” The Ilenian added concerned but Jenna shook her head resolutely and already stood up to snatch the smaller one of the black overalls Nemon had brought for them.

    “It’s alright Nemon, really. I don’t want us to treat Set like he’s gone completely mental, it would only make him more suspicious. The more normal we act towards him the sooner he’ll realize that he has just been talked into believing the thing with the clone. Plus he would never hurt me.”

With this she disappeared inside the adjacent shower room. She noticed Nemon taking his leave after another second and Jenna was surprised he didn’t object to what she had said. But soon after he was gone Zar enlightened her:

    _“I told Dr. Nemon I would watch over you in his stead… you are really trying to convince yourself, hm?_ ” he added wondering and Jenna stopped in pulling the gown over her head.

    “What do you mean?” she asked, yet she knew what he meant before he answered her.

    _“That he won’t hurt you. I’m fairly sure he would have stabbed you with that spider leg if I hadn’t intervened.”_ He retorted but Jenna shook her head, what he couldn’t see, and stepped under the shower to slather her body with washing gel.

    “He would’ve threatened me but you saw how quickly he backed down. If he had really meant to kill me he would’ve gotten himself into a fight with you, no matter if you killed him or not. And that means he is already doubting his clone-theory himself. I just can’t let him intimidate me, that's all.” She returned, now louder over the rushing of the shower and turned her face into the hot stream of water with a sigh. After all the eager but also quite gross grooming of the caretakers this measly shower felt like heaven on earth.

Jenna took her time under the running water and only turned it off when her skin was red and raw from all her scrubbing. As she stepped out of the shower and raised her eyes she flinched surprised. Zar had been waiting in front of the door and met her gaze beseechingly. Quizzical she cocked her head. While she was fully aware of her nakedness she didn’t mind him staring at her, after all the Zar’tak had seen her naked on multiple occasions by now and he didn’t seem bothered by it at all as well.

    _“I did tell him that I wouldn’t kill him for your sake, because I know just how much he means to you. But that doesn’t mean I won’t do it if he attacks you.”_ He said voiceless inside her head and narrowed his eyes. Jenna nodded silently and stepped past him to put on the overall.

    “Noted. But just so you know, I _will_ throw myself between you and him in any case.” She reminded him and left the quarantine area.

Outside, Car was already waiting impatiently for her and gave a quiet squeal when Jenna smiled at her. The Vortian bounced on her stilted legs until the human had crossed the distance between them so she could hug her friend in a tight embrace and muss the short shock of hair with both her hands. That made Jenna laugh and she beamed at Car once she had let up on her.

“Hey quit it you’re destroying my style!” she complained played and stuck out her tongue when Car gave her a doubting look over.

    “You humans must be _really_ backwards if you call that a style.” The Vortian teased her before grabbing her hand and pulling her along the narrow hallway. “By the way, thanks a _bunch_. Because of your filthy Prerk-friends I was sick for hours from those antibiotics! And now I have to show you around and explain everything to you!”  But she smiled the whole time she was complaining.

After a few turns they passed the MedBay, which Jenna already knew, so Car lead her up the ramp to the surface. There she stopped for a second and tried to decide where to next when Jenna tugged on her sleeve and gave her an apologetic look that had Car narrow her eyes immediately.

    “Okay… what are you plotting this time? You’re _plotting_ , I can see it in your eyes and by the looks of it it’s something _bad_ that I’m going to hate, isn’t it?!” she hissed and crossed her arms with a sigh. Jenna shrugged caught and took a deep breath.

    “I want you to take me to Set. Nemon said he took my stuff with him and I kinda need that back.” She added when the mistrusting look on her face turned into a downright shocked expression.

    “After what he did to you?! My father told me how he treated you on the flight field and the guard at quarantine said he tried to murder you in the night!” she exclaimed scandalized, causing some of the working aliens around them to shoot them curious glances and Jenna quickly raised her hands.

    “Okay, stop freaking out please, he didn’t try to _murder_ me, geez! He’s… okay, I admit it, he’s acting pretty crazy and yes he meant to threaten me into admitting I’m a clone or a robot or something, but we both know that I’m real and this is why we have to confront him! If you don’t want to come with me, that’s okay. Just tell me where he keeps his stuff so I can get my things back, okay?” she tried and gave a little whine when Car gnashed her teeth with squinted eyes. “Come on, please? Don’t make me beg.”

Car glared at her for a second longer before she threw her hands in the air and started walking towards the flight field.

    “Okay, okay, you won, you crazy human! But I will deny that I had anything to do with this in case he murders you on the spot! And I _will_ push you in the way if he goes for me first!” she groused but took her hand again to drag her along.

    “Thanks Car.” Jenna said smiling and braced herself internally for what was likely to come.           

         

* * *

  
  
  
  
* 1 parsec = 3,26 lightyears   
**subarachnoid space: The space between the arachnoid membrane and the pia mater which is filled with cerebrospinal fluid and contains the large blood vessels that supply the brain and spinal cord. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay. *takes deep breath*
> 
> I'm sorry for screwing up the update again, I feel like a total failure and I hope you're not all too mad at me.
> 
> I wasn't sure if I should tell you guys the reason behind the delay, but I just need to get this off my chest because I'm not really able to deal with this anyway else besides putting it out here where everybody and nobody can see it, and while I know I should probably seek some professional about this I know I won't do that all that soon because all my life I was told that what I feel was just "made up" or "looking for attention" or "being lazy".
> 
> I don't really know what caused it, though I'm pretty sure that the recent horrible events in France, Turkey and Germany played at least a part in this, but I got hit by a really, really bad episode of anxiety and depression, again. At one point throughout those weeks it got so bad I called in sick at work for two days even though I wasn't sick at all but I just couldn't leave the house/my bed at all. This weekend I have spent entirely in my apartment and I'm almost relieved I have to leave on Tuesday to visit my parents for my dad's birthday, because it forces me to get up and do something and not succumb to the feeling of pointlessness. 
> 
> I admit, I didn't write that much in all that time, in fact, this whole chapter was done in the last three days, so, I don't blame you if you think it's shitty or half-assed but I just couldn't bare to waste another week not driving the story further. I still intend to finish this and I want to finish it well! 
> 
> Yeah, so, enough of me being a whiny bitch, I hope you guys had a better time ♥♥♥


	96. Ultimatum - Pt.3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **C U R I O S I T Y has its very own Twitter now! I'll post more about updates and funny shit that happens during the writing process or just general headcanons and funfacts I get!!  
> **  
>  https://twitter.com/CURIOSITYupdate

### \- 31 Ultimatum –

  
**Part 3**  
  
  
Car was trudging with brisk steps through the scattered aliens that were working, drilling or standing guard and she kept cursing quietly to herself. Jenna immediately noticed the glances directed towards her when they spotted the human; surprised, disbelieving and partly accompanied by speechless gaping, the rebels briefly stopped in their work to openly stare at her. It didn’t take long for a hushed murmuring to resound behind her which the seniors among them quickly put a stop to with sharp orders as soon as they had managed to shake off their own initial shock.

Jenna would have liked to stop and talk to them, simply to greet them but also to immediately dispel any rumors that may have already been spreading since her sudden return with an entire Prerk swarm in her back.

Car’s sharp exhale jerked her from her observations and Jenna looked forward. They were walking towards another flat building reminding her of a row of construction site trailers, only a lot bigger and she thought having seen these pre-built frames before, in the _Rebellion_ ’s hangar. Some of Tork’s lieutenants were standing in front of the entrance or just exiting the building and again she was regarded with surprised looks.

    “That’s the lieutenants’ quarters.” Car said short-spoken, her tension clearly audible in her voice.

Jenna shook her head in confusion and eyed the building.

     “What? You mean like a bivouac?” Actually it shouldn’t really have surprised her, after all this was a military encampment, it was only logical that the soldiers had to share the space. Still she found the thought of Set sharing anything with anybody voluntarily a little disconcerting.

    “Yep, although the lieutenants are still relatively comfy compared to the pilots or the ordinary fighters… or us.”

They sidled past two other Vortians into the building and Car looked around warily for a second before she sighed relieved and pulled Jenna along further back to where the lieutenants’ camp beds stood side by side, a steel chest in front each of them. “Alright, he isn’t here, good for _me_.” She just uttered and checked the illuminated displays of each chest until she stopped in front one and pointed at it. “Hurry up, I don’t wanna risk running into him when all the other lieutenants are already gone.”

Jenna hunkered down in front of the chest and meddled with the lock, rolling her eyes at the comment.

    “Can you please stop acting like Set’s going to rip us apart as soon as he sees us? Jesus, he would never harm us, how often do I have to say that?” she muttered and managed to open the lid after a few tries.

    “Easy for you to say… but you haven’t really understood how… how strange he has become since we’ve gotten here. He barely talks anymore unless you speak to him directly and he’s always carrying your… your calendar-thingy around, the one with the weird headphones.” The Vortian replied stubborn and cast another glance over her shoulder.

    “My iPod?” Jenna asked surprised and felt a sting in her chest. While she had already known that the Irken was nuts about music ever since he had heard her singing back then she had never imagined he’d seek something like solace in it. It moved her to no end and only made it even more clear how hard the loss of her must’ve affected him, which was why she was all the more determined to get him back.

She turned her attention back to the open chest. Her clothes had been neatly folded together on top of the big backpack she had taken with her from Earth. Her sketchbook was flipped open at the center and her pencils put into the middle. As she beheld her belongings like that she suddenly felt like looking at some sort of shrine and couldn’t help but feel like an intruder. Then she spotted her Chronometer, the Resistance’s silvery bracelet and her armor belt and quickly took them. She didn’t really dare tearing the other objects out of their arrangement although she would’ve loved to take the necklace with the Dilamite-crystal as well yet she couldn’t find it anywhere…

Car growled behind her and already turned around when Jenna got back on her feet.

    “You got everything? Then let’s bust, we’ve already been here too-“ – “What are you doing here?” A dark, warning voice asked behind them and Car all but knocked Jenna down when she jumped away from the speaker. Jenna bumped into the chest and the lid shut with a loud bang. Staggering back, she looked up startled and was able to get a glimpse of the absolutely outraged glare with which Set stared at her before the crimson eyes leveled on Car and he raised his upper lip into a snarl. “What’s the meaning of this?!” he wanted to know angrily.

For a moment Car looked like she didn’t really know whether she should faint or let the ground swallow her; a tremble went through her ramrod body as the Vortian defensive instinct kicked in, enabling her to freeze her body for multiple minutes and her vermillion eyes seemed to bulge out of their sockets, but then she just stormed past Set without another glance at Jenna.

    “JennaI’llwaitoutsideokaybye.” She stammered panicked and was gone. Jenna looked around Set’s arm to see the entrance’s door sliding shut behind her and wasn’t surprised to find the quarters deserted except for Set and her all of a sudden. But what worried her more was the fact that apparently everyone was shunning Set again. And Car hadn’t merely been nervous just now; that had been pure fear. What had happened that everyone was so afraid of Set again?

She raised her gaze, had to lay her head back to look up to him. Set was staring at her alertly and even though he tried not to let it show she could still see the silent tensing of his jaws and heard the suppressed whirring and clicking in his Pak and his metal arm as though he was bracing for an attack. For a second they just looked at each other silently, then she couldn’t bear his appraising glare anymore and looked down on the Chronometer she was weighing in one hand. Nemon hadn’t wanted to let her go alone and now that Car was gone she suddenly felt very, very vulnerable…

    _“Don’t be afraid, I’m close.”_

Zar’s smooth contact almost made her flinch. Quickly she looked around without turning her head and giving away that they weren’t alone anymore and indeed thought seeing one of the shadows under the beds move. Now that was a little too _close_ for a private conversation. She sighed and then looked back up to Set, involuntarily chewing her bottom lip.

    “I actually thought you would… _greet_ me once I’m back.” She said quietly, not even trying to hide the sorrow and desire in her voice, and saw the way his eyes widened for a second before they quickly narrowed again in mistrust. Jenna was close to pulling out her hair. “Okay, I get it, you still don’t believe me.” She resigned.

    “What… what happened to your hair?” he asked finally and if his voice hadn’t sounded so inquiringly, with a silent growl deep in his throat, she would’ve actually been glad to hear him talking to her. Jenna gave him a cynical grin and tugged on a short strand that was tickling her eyebrow.

    “Well first of all they were _cut_ and haven’t just _grown_ to this length if that’s what you’re getting at.” She shot back and he flinched caught. “Since you obviously haven’t talked to either Tork or Nemon about what happened, I’ll fill you in Set: I was floating through space for 70 days without being aware of anything that was happening to me until the Prerk found me and saved me from just crashing on some random planet. They captured the Zar’tak sent to find me and walled him in in one of their cells because they hate the Meekrob and mistrust anyone who has something to do with them. Do you have any idea what the first thing was I saw when I woke up? Instead of your face, like you promised me?” she added, now accusing, and Set shook his head automatically. “A maggot the size of a grown man! I woke up in a pile of slimy, stinking, giant insects! It was hot and stuffy in there and I was covered in slime and dirt! I didn’t know what had happened, I didn’t know where I was, where _you_ were and I was scared to death!”

Jenna had to breathe and forced herself to swallow both tears and the lump in her throat trying to choke her voice. “I thought… I thought you were dead- that you all were dead! And not because the Prerk had attacked you or the Irkens, but because I didn’t know if I had been frozen for a few days or already for a century! I tried everything to get back to you… I killed a defenseless, trapped invader and drank his blood just to get some of his Pakrit and challenge the Prerk queen so that I could force her to take me back to the rebels, back to _you_ , Set! I took all of this upon myself and what do I get? You think I’m just a fucking clone, some sort of test tube abomination!”

She was close to screaming now but he was still not showing any reaction to what she was saying. So she kept going: “I could recite every single moment since you abducted me, I could sing you every fucking song on this iPod and I could tell you every goddamn sketch in this book without having to even look inside, Set!” she panted with her voice shaking and pointed at the chest next to her feet. “But I know that it would be pointless because you’ve already made up your mind about me and no matter what I said I wouldn’t convince you either way. At least not completely, right?”

Set was still not saying anything but now he was so shaken that he didn’t even have the strength to keep up his distrusting expression. He just stared at her, silent. Jenna wanted to shout at him, wanted to grab him and shake him until he’d see reason again but she only managed to utter a weak sigh and wrapped the belt around her hips so she wouldn’t have to look at him. “Whatever, we don’t have time for this shit. The fact that I was gone may have delayed Tork’s plans but I’m still intent on helping the rebels destroy the Tallest and if you don’t want to work with me, because you’re afraid I could be anything else than _myself_ , then I’ll do it without you. I can get the Pakrit from the Prerk, the queen has a real stock of it.”

She walked past him and was ready for him to try and stop her, to finally say something, but the tall invader still didn’t move a muscle and just looked after her until she was at the door. Jenna clenched her fists and relaxed them again, it was no use trying to be mad at him. Instead she left the quarters without another word and walked over to Car who was standing a few feet away, with her hands nervously intertwined, and who groaned relieved when she saw her.

    “I’m sorry I just ran out like that! Are you okay?!” she asked quickly and grabbed her shoulder. Jenna shot her a quick, pained smile and furtively wiped her face with the sleeve of her overall.

    “Well he didn’t attack me…” she replied choked up before she squared her shoulders and looked around. A figure shot out of the ground from a shadow next to them and materialized into the Zar’tak’s tall black frame within the blink of an eye, calmly regarding Jenna and Car out of glowing eyes.

    _“I was under the impression that he was very insecure about the situation… I am fairly sure it won’t be long for him to lose his doubts thus far that he will seek the contact with you again. There was something else inside him… something like… longing?”_ the telepath mused in their thoughts and Car looked at him both startled and pleasantly surprised. Zar had also put on one of the black overalls, though on him it looked a lot less black and more like a dark grey compared to his pitch black body. Jenna gave him a staggered look.

    “Really? Then you know more than I do, Zar.” She admitted. To her Set had only appeared wary and angry. Car looked back and forth between them and cocked a brow.

    “ _Zar_?” she asked curious and the human smiled sheepishly.

    “Yeah, well I had to give him a name to call him, don’t you think? I thought Zar was quite fitting and up to now he hasn’t complained, right?” she said towards the black alien who just gave them a snake like smile and shrugged with his four arms. But Car returned the smile a tad too mockingly.

    “So, can I call you _Zaza_ as a pet name?” she asked with a giggle and the five eyes narrowed the teensiest bit.

    _“I had already forgotten how charming you are.”_ He commented aridly and crossed the shorter pair of arms in front of his chest. Car stopped him with a wave of her hand and linked arms with Jenna.

    “Come, I imagine you could use some food after this disaster. Even though the food has become… rather _colorless_ compared to before we got here.” She added in a tone that left no doubt about how absolutely terrible the food had to be. But Jenna nodded delighted and patted her stomach.

    “Trust me Car, it can’t be anywhere nearly as horrible as the stuff I had to eat the last ten cycles… I could fetch you a sample.” She said and felt Zar’s laughter even before it resounded inside her head.

    _“Please do it, I’d love to see that.”_ He chuckled and followed them to another, halfway buried building in the center of the base where a few groups of aliens were already mingling. As they got closer they turned around to them and Jenna had to smile when she saw the first gaping mouths and eyes and then heard their surprised cries.

    “Hey, look, it’s Jenna!”

    “She’s really back, how did she do that?!”

     “Well I heard the Prerk found her.”

    “And I heard that she’s the new queen of those savages.”

A little bit nervous she approached the group right in front of the entrance and recognized a few of Nemon’s assistants among them as well as some of the pilots Feorn had introduced her to then. In a second she was surrounded and they assailed her with questions and not even Zar’s usually so unsettling aura could stop the rebels. Overwhelmed Jenna tried to reply to them and return the many greetings and touches but she quickly noticed that it was getting too much for her…

    “Oi!” The raspy voice tore through the noise like a whiplash and the other rebels froze stunned. With sharp elbows and well placed kicks the squaller made his way towards her through the press and shoved a tall Ilenian aside to wrap wiry arms around her neck and pull her against him. In this short moment she could barely make out yellow eyes and grey, scarred skin but the relieved, throaty laughter that followed the embrace could only belong to one person.

    “Jak!” she called out happily and returned the old Vortian’s hug just as tightly.

    “Darnit lassie I wouldn’t believe it when the Commander said that yer back! Shit, what were ya thinkin’ disappearin’ like that? My poor ol’ pump can’t take a shock like that no more!” Jak ranted with tender strictness and pushed her away at arm’s length to look her over more closely, shaking his head in the process. “Yer’ve gotten awfully scrawny sweetheart an’ solemn now that I’ve had a good look at yer pretty face… but I gotta say yer rockin’ the rebel look now, eh?” He ruffled her hair with a grin and Jenna rolled her eyes, still smiling.

    “What can I say, I really fancy those dramatic entrances.” She quipped back and let Jak lead her into the makeshift mess hall, already brimming with people and stuffy compared to the spartanic quarters of the lieutenants. Jenna played around with the silver bracelet, lost in thoughts and let her gaze wander over the cramped benches. Despite the desperate situation they were in the rebels managed to keep an almost genial atmosphere in here.

Car squeezed past them and waved at Reliat, who was sitting at one of the long tables with a few soldiers and medical assistants and smiled back happily when he spotted them. The other aliens at the table looked up as well and immediately chuted even closer together to make some room for the newcomers. While Jak headed off to get her some food Jenna sank down on the bench across from Reliat and Car, reciprocating, and braced for the storm of questions that already started to crash over her the second her butt touched the metal.

The Zar’tak silently looked for a quiet place at the wall behind her where he could be for himself and had an eye on the whole room, the four arms again loosely crossed behind his back and in front of his chest, taking on his role as the silent guard again.

Jenna waited until the first excited calls had subsided before taking a deep breath and starting to explain what had happened after she woke up in the Prerk’s nest. While she tried to leave no detail out she was also very cautious to mention that she hadn’t lost control once, after drinking the invader’s blood, and attacked anyone. After all, the incident with Rex had been the reason for a high ranking member of the Resistance to try and kill her.

Jenna noticed the unspoken relief on their faces when she assured them the Prerk were here to fight by their side and not, as many of them had already feared, to scavenge their miserable remains once the Irkens were done with them.

    “So will you be able to use the Pakrit again? Like you did in the arena?” a young Vortian asked full of hope and Jenna scrutinized him aghast. He couldn’t be older than fifteen stars! For a second she had to think of Set and apparently the older rebels were thinking the same from the way they were shooting each other glances. Hesitating, she answered him: “Yes, I will. The queen of the Prerk… has some sort of stock of living Irkens. I know, that sounds pretty terrifying – and to be honest, it is – but we have to use everything we got. If… if Set refuses to give me some of his Pakrit I will have to use that of the imprisoned invaders but that works just fine.” She returned with her heart pounding in her chest and waited tensed for the reaction of the aliens around her. The young Vortian had just widened his eyes, but the others were exchanging those glances again.

Before she could ask, however, Jak returned with her food and she took the flat tray gratefully. Inside was a form of mush you really couldn’t describe as awfully appetizing. But at least it tasted a thousand times better than the “nectar” that Korr had forced upon her ever so enthusiastically each and every morning of those ten days. At the mere thought of this slimy stuff Jenna shivered and quickly shoveled a spoon-full of instant-nutrient-porridge into her mouth. Jak kept talking to the others but since their greatest curiosity had already been satisfied the crowd of aliens soon dispersed and when Jenna had licked the last few smudges off her spoon the mess hall was almost empty. Only the pilots and a few other soldiers from the _Rebellion_ ’s original crew had stayed. Quor, the Steelhunter was among them as well and Jenna realized that he was scrutinizing her thoughtfully.

     “Quor, you look like something’s on your mind.” Jenna addressed him after she’d pushed her tray aside and turned around to him and the Steelhunter gave a crunching grunt.

     “Ironhead told me what happened last night. That the Lieutenant Commander tried to kill you. He had the watch over quarantine.” The metal being explained in his raspy voice and Jenna frowned without really noticing it.

    “He did not try to kill me!” she insisted tenacious and Quor shrugged with a dismissive hand gesture.

    “Whatever. You should be careful around him… he really changed ever since you were gone for longer.”

Now Jenna leant forward on her elbows and reached out an open hand.

    “Okay, can you please wise me up?  What exactly do you mean with changed? I’ve heard this enough times by now, that he got cold and reclusive but nobody wanted to get into any greater detail about it!” she complained and gave him a searching look. The Steelhunter grunted sarcastically, the silver band he wore like a necklace around his short neck jingled as he shrugged again.

    “Well I guess that’s because the matter isn’t exactly what you’d want to tell someone who’s returned from an undoubtedly traumatic experience right off the bat. Or over a meal. You know that we attacked the Tallest Tower, right?” he asked and she nodded quickly, she had seen everything in Tork’s mind. Now Quor leaned in on her and lowered his voice, his optic visor flashed brightly and the bio-lights on his massive metal body pulsated. “But did you know what happened after that?”

First she wanted to nod right away, but the insinuation in his voice made her halt.

    “The armada attacked the moon, didn’t they? Before the Meekrob created the barrier.” She remembered tentatively and he pointed at her with one finger.

    “Exactly. And it was during this attack that the Irken showed his true nature… everyone who survived this fight or heard about it from those survivors only calls it the Bloodbath.”

Jenna trembled involuntarily on her bench and saw from the corner of her eye how Zar raised his head attentively and extended a mental feeler for her, like an invisible hand that placed itself on her shoulder.

Quor went on: “We were on one squad and were ordered to fend off the advancing ground forces. He was in command and supposed to keep our ranks in order. But then he was suddenly gone without a trace. We held our position bravely for a while but then the first turned tail and fled and more followed them and our line of defense crumbled away, consumed by chaos. What were we supposed to do, our commanding officer had abandoned us! The Irkens launched a direct assault on our position, we were easy prey for them and they didn’t bother with watching their flanks or rear. I remember looking back over my shoulder and seeing the Lieutenant Commander in his jet, swooping down between their troops and simply crushing the majority of them beneath his fighter before he jumped out of the cockpit, dismembering each and every one of the remaining Irkens himself. It wasn’t a clean fight, there was nothing honorable about it…” Quor had raised his gaze a bit and seemed to look over her head into the distance. “My kind places great value on honor and dignity even when fighting your most hated enemy. Such a malicious maneuver, using your own forces as bait… when it was over the blood of the Irkens had drenched the moon dust in crimson and the invader was barely visible beneath the many layers covering his face but I could see the hatred in his eyes, a vile fury close to madness. He had taken out all his anger on his own kind, all his frustration over his loss. I grew up among people who barely show their reactions on the outside for we cover our faces with masks out of tradition. Which was why his emotions were blatantly screaming at me and for the first time in a while I felt unease in his presence again. He has become cold, yes, with the only goal to take as many Irkens with him when he dies. But no matter how often he throws himself at them he is always the last one standing. Often severely injured but he doesn’t even grant his body enough time to heal properly and always gets back into the next fight. I think you can well imagine how frustrated Nemon must be by now.”

Jenna had torn open her eyes and she was staring at him with her mouth opened in shock. Quor returned her stare again and his body crunched as he shook. “I don’t know whether it’s more frightening knowing that this time it ain’t the Irken Codes that are responsible for his blood lust and cold-heartedness…” he muttered quietly. “And I-, _we_ are praying that you can bring him back to his senses once more, even though we have no idea how you could possibly succeed. But then again, you already managed to do the impossible on more occasions than I can fathom, _lucky charm_.”

With this he got up and left the mess hall without another word, too upset by his memories. Jenna kept staring at the spot where he had sat just a second ago before she looked up to stare at Car and Reliat, averting their eyes with downcast expressions. Even Jak next to her had gotten suspiciously quiet.

    “You knew about it…” Jenna mumbled slowly and felt the gentle pressure of Zar’s mental contact in her nape as he now pushed off the wall and awkwardly threaded his long legs between bench and table to sit down beside her and place an actual hand on her shoulder. Car was the first one to catch herself and dared to return her gaze, but just as she opened her mouth all of their Chronometers started bleeping rapidly all of a sudden and Reliat jumped from his seat reflexively to make a dash for the door. Deeply confused and also alarmed Jenna stared at the flashing, shrilly whistling gadget in her palm and then looked around once, more alarmed.

    “What the…” she started but now Car, Jak and everyone else in the mess hall got up as well and quickly left the building. Only Zar didn’t seem all that hectic and pulled Jenna along outside while he explained the situation to her: _“It’s a general distress call, under normal circumstances the entire Resistance would have to gather in the main hangar, but I got the strong suspicion that_ we _two will have to go to the command center instead.”_

He was right; not two seconds later Tork called her on an open channel: “Jenna, please get to the command center, stat! I think you should hear this.”

It was the unspoken terror in his voice that made her run.    

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Phew, I'm really happy with how this chapter turned out and I want to thank you guys again for being so patient with me and for all the good vibes you sent my way ♥♥♥  
> I'm feeling a lot better now and really indulging in writing sure helped a lot with the stress I was under. I used to see writing as something "illegal", something I did instead of studying and I think I just need to realize that I am not procrastinating anymore by writing, but that I really have the time now to create, to delve into my creativity and allow it to consume me wholly.
> 
> Thank you for your support, hope you enjoyed this chapter! Next will be up on September 18th, or earlier if I'm on a roll ;)


	97. Ultimatum - Pt. 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> C U R I O S I T Y has its very own Twitter now! I'll post more about updates and funny shit that happens during the writing process or just general headcanons and funfacts I get!!  
> twitter.com/CURIOSITYupdate

### \- 31 Ultimatum –

  
**Part 4**   
  
_A few seconds later - Rebel Base - Moon of Irk_   
  


  
Jenna hurried through the lines of rebels that had suddenly gathered in the center of the base and she had to vociferously apologize multiple times after bumping into some of them in her hurry but somehow she managed to get to the command center in a few minutes time, not least because Zar had finally caught up with her, showing her the way she otherwise may not have found in time.

Raised moon dust was tickling her throat when she squeezed past the guards into the dark belly of the command center. Hushed, alarmed muttering confronted them and she had to force herself to not stare into the many scared and dismayed faces as they made their way towards Tork, who was sitting in a cast-off pilot seat at the other end of the room with a stony expression, his gaze fixedly set on the waving lines of an incoming, yet muted, audio message on the screen before him. But he turned his head the second he noticed them enter.

Jenna stepped around the middle console, wanting to ask the Commander in a low voice what was going on when one of the technicians turned on the audio at a silent nod from Tork.

    “Alright, listen up you filthy rebel-scum!”

Red.

Jenna recoiled from the screen as if the Tallest could’ve reached through it and claw at her. She bumped into the Zar’tak who was standing right behind her, and the four big paws gently caught her, keeping her from just turning heel and running out of the room at the same time. With her eyes wide open Jenna was forced to listen to the Tallest’s message.

    “I gotta admit you’ve been holding yourself pretty well up to now. But I think we _all_ know just what is going to happen once this cute little force field kicks the bucket, amirite?” he made a popping sound with his lips, uncannily imitating a bursting cartoon soap bubble. “Then there’s nothing left standing in the armada’s way to crush your pathetic base and blow everyone even close to it into space! At first we were still pondering whether or not we should try and take some prisoners, you know, to torture the whereabouts of the rest of you rebels out of them, but Purple here had some very, very convincing _arguments_ for a complete organic sweep instead.”

The mood in the tiny room slowly but surely started to change; the up to this point restrained comments grew louder and frantic and even Ink and Ironhead, Torks bodyguards, shot each other a short but clearly nervous glance.

Red carried on and now his voice sounded softer, patronizing even: “Now I’m sure you’re all super panicky right now and run around screaming like oooh nooo, we’re gonna die, aargh!” he gave off a very bored, halfhearted wail. “But there _is_ a way for the lot of you to not die a horrible, agonizing death! And all you have to do is turn one of you in. That one being a certain _human_ and while you’re already at it you can _also_ hand over that traitor-scum- _invader_ you terrorists are harboring!” Red had raised his voice more and more and fell silent for a moment, seemed to take a second to reign himself in again.

In that moment the door to the command center was torn open and Set bolted into the terrified silence, breathless as if he’d been running. He had a comlink transmitter ejected from his Pak and the quiet echo of Red’s voice filled the shocked silence. His wide, searching eyes found Jenna’s gaze and he stopped dead in his tracks when he saw her standing next to Tork.

    “Let’s just focus on the human. We know she’s back with you as of late and that she brought those stinking Prerk along! So here’s our offer: hand over the human and you’re free to go. No tricks, no traps, you have my word as Tallest! We won’t hunt you down and we won’t attack anyone once we have her. And as a token of our sincerity and good will we won’t attack anyone who wants to leave this party earlier, either. But let’s get one thing straight: we’ll know if you try to smuggle her off this stupid moon, got it? Okay, then lemme explain this again for the _really_ stupid ones among you: You give us the human, Jenna – if you have any more humans we’re not fucking interested in those – and all dirty rebels can go home. You _don’t_ hand her in, in… let’s say… uhm… hm? _Three_ days?! Don’t you think that’s a bit _long_?!”

A barely audible quarrel with Purple followed before Red was back and in that time Jenna and Set just kept staring at each other from across the room through the holographic screen in silent horror, as did the rest of the rebels inside the cramped control center. “Alright, three days. We don’t have the human by then: Complete organic sweep. So? Well I don’t think that’s a very difficult decision to make! All those traitors, cowards and _profit-_ oriented among you are welcome to contact us over one of the open public long-range comlinks if you want to earn some moneys for an _express delivery_ , it’s not like we’re not generous towards good services in the name of the Empire if you catch my drift. And so you don’t forget about our ultimatum, and to undermine your moral a bit, we’re gonna spam every one of your open channels with this message as of now. So long, see ya and remember: three days!”

The link was cut but only two seconds later the message started from the beginning and the techs quickly turned off the comm. In the following silence you could only hear the noise of flickering screens and bleeping scanners, as well as the silent scratching on cloth. Jenna turned around, her neck stiff, and saw how Tork rubbed his hand over his chest with a face distorted by pain. When he groaned stifled she quickly shook off Zar’s hands and ran the few steps over to Tork and grabbed his shoulders.

The Commander had gone as pale as a sheet, cold sweat forming on his forehead. The hand on his chest was clawing into the fabric of his overall now, so hard his knuckles were standing out under the skin almost white. She quickly righted him up and wrapped one of his arms over her shoulders to pull him onto his feet.

    “Hold on, I’ll get you to Nemon!” she said haunted and gave Ink and Ironhead a quick glance. The two of them seemed just as shocked as the rest of the present rebels for the split of a second but the next second they had recovered from their start and already ran off to create a way for Jenna. “Zar, teleport into the MedBay and tell Nemon that we’re on our way!” she ordered the telepath and he nodded silently before vanishing with a quiet, hissing noise, only leaving a small wisp of smoke behind from which the by standing rebels quickly recoiled. Ironhead bent down to her and wanted to lift Tork up in his massive arms but the Commander stopped him with a brusque wave of his free hand, panting in agony while his hand painfully clawed into Jenna’s shoulder.

    “I’- I’m not weak enough that I’d allow you t- to carry me bridal style! S- see to it that no panic erupts! Gather all the other lieutenants so they’ll do their fucking job!” he took a rattling breath, they were almost at the door, then he jerked his head around one more time. “Set!” the Commander snarled and the Irken was at his side in a blink. He had shaken off the shock as well and nodded devoted. “D- double the guards to- tonight, we mustn’t-“ But before he could finish the sentence the invader already put him off with a brisk move of his head.

    “As good as done, I know what to do.” He assured the leader of the Resistance and was already about to head out with Ironhead. But then he stopped for a second and looked down on Jenna who finally got some help from Ink now. The dark, quiet Vortian had taken her place, supporting the staggering Commander so she could get into contact with Nemon over her Chronometer and keep him updated about Tork’s state.

    “Jenna…”

Her name sounded like a timid question and as if it would have been followed by a plea for forgiveness but she shook her head and already pressed the Chronometer against her ear.

    “Later. Promise” she returned and ran along beside Ink towards the underground MedBay. Halfway down the ramp, a team of multiple assistants pushing a floating litter came their way and helped Ink with lifting the wheezing Commander onto it. Nemon was with them.

    “Pulse?” he asked hurried and Jenna told him briefly what symptoms she had seen in Tork in that short amount of time and how much time had passed since the start of the attack. The Ilenian checked his own Chronometer and left it to his assistants to connect Tork to the support-systems integrated into the litter while he already contacted the MedBay: “Prepare for surgery. And get Car out of acquisition, I don’t want her to see her father like this.”

Jenna ran after him and felt fear flaring up inside her for the first time since the Tallest’s message; fear for Tork.

    “Can I do anything!?” she blurted out and could now only see Nemon shaking his head since they were already through the second door and there was barely any space in the hallway.

    “Look after Car. Unfortunately there’s nothing else you can do right now, Jenna… I’m sorry but it doesn’t look good.” He added somber and hurried along with the assistants. Jenna’s heart painfully skipped a beat and she felt dizzy at the mere thought that something… life-threatening could be happening to the Commander.

Suddenly she heard a bright, metallic tapping behind her and turned her head surprised. SIR looked up to her with his usual, unmoving expression while he kept scuttling behind her with some distance. The hefty piece of metal covering the hole in his chest had been replaced by a more fitting one in the meantime, but he still looked pretty scratched up and dented, probably because he had been in some of the fights as well. Jenna wondered if she should take his presence as a good sign, now that he was apparently back to guarding her again, or if Set had ordered him to keep an eye _on_ her.

The next second they were already through the heavy door to the MedBay and the litter with Tork turned into the back part, towards the operating theater, and a sliding door closed behind the team with a hiss. Jenna’s run came to a slow stop until she finally stood in front of the door and looked through the small observation slit with wide, disbelieving eyes.

This wasn’t happening… this couldn’t be happening!

Behind her she heard a sudden, loud sob, then the sound of a door and a pained outcry. SIR wheeled around beside her and cowered down alertly.

    “I said let me go, damn it!” Car shouted and angrily pushed the guard away from her who had tried to lead her out of the MedBay. A second one was lying on the ground already, clutching his groin with such a distinctly pained expression that Jenna was briefly surprised about the similarity to human anatomy. But by then Car was already in front of her and her hardened face left no doubt about how determined she was to rush into that surgery no matter what was standing in her way!

Without thinking twice Jenna reached out and wrapped her arms around Car’s neck, pressing her closely to her body and didn’t let go, not even when the Vortian punched her in the side what educed a warning hiss from the little guard dog next to her leg.

    “I’m so sorry, Car.” Jenna uttered stifled, what was rather because that punch had driven the air out of her lungs, and she felt relieved how the angry force left her friend until she stopped fighting her embrace.

    “It’s not _fair_ …”, Car panted choked up and slumped a little in her arms, her shoulders trembling.

    “No, it’s not.” Jenna replied quietly and lead her with gentle force back to one of the stretchers at the wall. From the corner of her eye she saw Zar approaching them, the big hands self-consciously intertwined yet the five glowing eyes didn’t reveal any of his thoughts. His consciousness was circling their minds tentatively, as if he was trying to figure out how to help without doing or saying something wrong. In the end he carefully placed a hand on Car’s shoulder but kept the other three still close to his chest. When the Vortian slipped her hand over his, shooting him a faint but grateful smile, he relaxed visibly however. Jenna exhaled her held breath shakily and rested her hip against the stretcher, watching the door to surgery and tried to ignore SIR who was still staring at her.

Then they waited, tensed, for any sign from inside. From time to time Jenna took a checking glance at her Chronometer, but whether she was really expecting Nemon to contact them on this way or if she was just trying to distract herself she couldn’t tell herself. She also didn’t notice how time passed and when the door suddenly slid open with a gentle noise she flinched startled and noticed how cramped her muscles had become by now.

Reliat stepped out of the hallway and had barely made three steps when Car and Jenna already came running straight at him and tried to get a look around him into the operation theatre.

    “And?!” they uttered out of one mouth and the young doctor recoiled surprised. He was rubbing his palms together unnoticing, the same way Nemon used to after reading a patient’s vital signs. He looked a lot paler than normally and the four big, gingerbread-colored eyes were circled by deep rings. They looked desperately sorrowful and although he was trying not to let it on he couldn’t hold their gazes for long.

    “It… they’re doing the best they can. The shrapnel splinters in his ribcage got dangerously close to his heart due to high blood pressure… and compressed one of the coronary arteries so much it started to tear. Nemon’s about to try and remove them but the healed bone arches are too thick and uhm…” he suddenly couldn’t carry on and ran his hands over his face.

Jenna put a hand on his arm, squeezing it gently.

    “It’s alright, Reliat, N- Nemon is… he will…” But no matter what she tried to imagine herself saying next, nothing seemed right and she soon fell silent while Car just shoved past her to press her face into Reliat’s chest. The Ilenian hugged her closely and placed a tender kiss on one of her horns.

    “Car… I’m- I’m so sorry, I- if I could just-“, he breathed jerkily but she shook her head and wrapped her arms around his stout torso.

    “Just hold me, Rel, okay?” she asked him in return and he nodded in silence.

It tore her heart apart; Jenna wanted so badly to do something, there just had to be _something_ she could do to help instead of standing here and despair while the Vortian who had done so much for her was dying! Her gaze travelled over to Zar, now standing a few feet away again, looking just as helpless as she was feeling. If only the Meekrob was still here… he would’ve probably been able to help…

    “Oh my god…” she suddenly whispered and her eyes grew big.

    “Pardon?” Reliat asked confused and only now Jenna realized she had been talking in her language. She shook the stupor off and changed into Vortian: “Reliat! Do you still have some of the Pakrit left that you tested on me back then?!” She opened her hands to pantomime the small vial Set had taken from his Pak.

His eyes narrowed in thought.

    “I… yes, I think we stored the rest away. But what do you want with it?” Before he could keep asking she took his hand.

    “There’s no time, you have to inject me with it! I have no idea if it’s gonna work but I just have to try at least!” she pleaded and he gradually seemed to grasp what she was getting at as she dragged him along towards the laboratories.

    “Do you really… think it could work?” He sounded doubtful but also a little bit more hopeful than a few seconds ago and Jenna nodded in her hurry. Car and the Zar’tak followed them, just as baffled.

    “We’ll see, but in any case it’s better than just standing around here and go insane!” Jenna retorted and waited impatiently for him to unlock one of the doors. Reliat quickly found the cooling container with the vial and already was about to take one of the tiny syringes when she grabbed his hand and held out one of the big injectors.

    “If I’m going to do this, I’ll need to take all of it.”

Car placed a hand on her arm and pulled her around.

    “Jenna, don’t be reckless! We still don’t know what a high dose could do to you, and this is high grade stuff! I’m grateful that you want to help my father but you don’t help anybody by putting yourself in danger-“

Jenna only grinned crookedly at her friend and gently brushed off her hand.

    “Trust me.”

Car’s glare got a tad darker but she returned the grin.

    “Sure, as if that’s ever _not_ gotten us into trouble… just so you know: should you go completely insane again I will personally shoot you to Irk so you can lay everything to waste up there and not down here!” she gave back and cautionary took a few steps behind Zar while Jenna pushed the sleeve of her overall up to the crook of her arm, taking a deep breath.

Reliat had already filled the syringe with every last drop of Pakrit from the vial. With a scared expression he placed the needle on her skin and looked her in the eyes.

    “If- if something happens to you…” he started but she smiled and shook her head determined.

    “It’s my call Reliat. Do it.”

The needle pushed almost carefully into her arm, what hurt significantly more than necessary and she screwed her face a bit, but the second Reliat pressed his thumb on the piston the pain was forgotten. Everything was forgotten. There was only energy, shooting hot and crimson through her like a physical blow, throwing her back against the wall. Her muscles bulged under the overall’s fabric, absorbing the Pakrit in the fraction of a second and passing it on to her neural cells until her entire body was burning like a radioactive fuel rod and felt like it was trying to duplicate itself.

Car and Reliat recoiled from her in fear and the Zar’tak trembled when the force of the massive shock of energy she emitted hit him. None of them noticed SIR quickly sneaking out of the room and leaving the MedBay.

For a moment Jenna was sure her brain would explode and simply burst the barrier of her skull, so heavily did it gain in mass and cells. She could feel it stretching out the thin layers of tissue protecting it, but then it compressed and created new and even deeper branched folds to make more room for the new cells.

Wave after wave of the electromagnetic energy her body gave off travelled through the room, the base, all the way into space. She could feel the presence of each and every one of the rebels, each Irken on the Planet above them, the Prerk, even the residual energy of the Meekrob surrounding them, and the smaller, yet brighter spark within Zar – _everything_! Their thoughts, their past, the future; it was all at her fingertips and all she had to do was concentrate on what she wanted to see and…

As she let her mind expand further and further, unrestrained, she suddenly felt something new. It was _red_ and at the same time pitch black. If doom had a color of its own, it would be this swirl of black and red. And it _looked_ back at her. Jenna could sense a gaze on her spirit, observing her with a cold interest when it suddenly pounced on her! She had to pull back, away from this red fog, or it would catch and devour her! _Back, further back, focus on your body!_

After a few terrifying seconds Jenna sensed how she retreated from the presence with her mind intact and collected her unleashed spirit back into her own head until her sphere of influence was somewhat confined to the base. 

Almost relieved she exhaled and came back down to the ground. Once her feet touched the floor she realized surprised that she had been floating a good foot in the air and added this sensation to her memories so she could recreate it. Then she looked up and noticed the nervous, shocked faces of her friends, safe for Zar who was looking at her downright enraptured as he drank in the now gentler pulses of energy she was emitting. Energy… right, she had meant to do something! And although she had explored so much barely a few seconds had passed since the needle had pierced her skin.

    _“Don’t be afraid, it’s still me.”_ She sent them telepathically, not wanting to further scare them with the eerie echo in her voice. Car shook her head, dazed, and hardly managed to get her gaping mouth back under control.

    “Oh shit… I mean - you told me about it, but I never thought it’d be so…”

    “Incredible?” Reliat finished her sentence with thin voice and his girlfriend just nodded silently. Jenna focused on further restraining the amount of energy she was giving off and concentrated it, powering down her metabolism as far as she could to conserve Pakrit; she would need every last bit of it since she had no idea how much she would have to actually use.

    _“Go, you don’t have much time. And I don’t mean the Pakrit.”_ Zar urged her and Jenna darted out of the lab, through acquisition and towards the door sealing off the surgery sector. The locked door slid to the side without her having to even move a muscle and the second door didn’t pose an obstacle either.

It was glaringly bright inside the operating theater and she removed more Pakrit from her facial nerves so she wouldn’t get blinded. The doctors that were standing around Tork’s opened ribcage wheeled around in start and Nemon, standing closest to her, almost dropped his scalpel before he recognized her.

    “Jenna?! What the- what are you doing here? Why…” he blurted out aghast but broke off abruptly when he noticed the crimson gleam in her eyes and the crushing power of her unshackled consciousness filling the entire room like a dense liquid.

She didn’t say a word, words were time wasted; she already felt how Tork’s heartbeat was getting weaker with every second, how his brain tried frantically to send signals to the struggling organ and the blood staunching in his arteries. She could smell the enzymes from the dying cells and tasted the bitter molecules of the shrapnel splinters that were stuck in his chest, right under the dense mesh of rib-bones.

Instead of an explanation she let a fraction of her mind fan out, let it enter the heads of the surgeons and calmed them, ordering them to step further back from the operating table. Then she shut her eyes and concentrated on the shrapnel’s metal until she’d found even the very last of its atoms. Her mental feelers examined the splinters from every side, where they were stuck, which blood vessels they were compressing and what options she had to remove them.

Jenna settled for one, the hardest of them all but also the one that would do the least damage. But she would need more energy for this…

    _“Nemon. Electrocute me.”_ She ordered in her thoughts and focused harder on the molecular structures before her, trying to blend everything else out as her mind entered an entirely new universe observing electrons, protons and even smaller objects.

Nemon didn’t even think about objecting and waved at one of the other doctors to hand him a stationary defibrillator, used for brief shocks but also able to produce a stable current. This energy she would use. Jenna waited patiently for Nemon to remove the clamps from their handles and attach them to both sides of her neck before she gave them a short warning: _“Everybody clear the room. I can’t tell what could possibly happen.”_

Only when the surgeons had left the operation theatre she used her body’s own electric impulses to tap into the defibrillator’s system and turn it on, allowing the massive jolts of energy to pass through her like a human jumper, feeding on the voltage. It felt unpleasant, not as fluent and natural as the Pakrit but it would do. Jenna focused back on Tork and the metal shards. Her breath was reduced to one draw in two minutes, her heart beating just as slowly and time itself seemed to expand, seconds growing into minutes and minutes into hours; only her brain was working on unprecedented speeds. She reached out her hands until they were right over Tork’s opened chest and she thought back to that moment on the _Massive_ when she had disintegrated the cell’s plasma bars.

_Matter is energy condensed… and energy is matter… it’s that simple._

With this phrase in her thoughts she let the energy flow into her hands and used her fingers to focus it into separated rays, like small lasers… _think about small lasers burning holes into something and vaporizing matter into atoms…_

She pointed her fingers at the hidden shrapnel splinters embedded in Tork’s chest. _Think about lasers that only destroy what you command them to._

She imagined how the molecules within the metal’s atomic lattice were forced to detach from one another and turn into single atoms. Tiny, but forceful energy impulses shot from her fingertips. They were smaller than the atoms’ cores so she could aim them better at the metal atoms while sparing those of Tork’s body. With her mind still focusing on observing the splinters’ integrity she noticed that it was working. The shrapnel pieces were gradually shrinking as their matter was simply vaporized and became gaseous.

Then Jenna got curious. If she was already able to manipulate the atoms… then she could also make new ones from them. _Think of the synthesizer… but let it become a blender. Create new matter._

She bundled more energy, left her body behind and only used it as a vessel and transformer for it so her mind wasn’t hindered by its physical boundaries and the signals from her cells. After one, two tries she’d gotten the hang of how to change the atoms and worked faster. Like a spider spinning her net or a weaver an elaborately patterned fabric in no time at all, Jenna created new molecules from the metal’s atoms, new structures, new DNA and eventually the first new cells. And when she finally felt confident enough with the process she returned into her body and slowly opened her eyes.

With a faint smile curling her lips she saw her fingers vibrating from the amounts of energy she was converting and witnessed new tissue gradually growing over the wounds left in Tork’s pecs out of thin air, an open artery splicing up and connecting to another one while Jenna dissolved the clogged, necrotic vessel that had caused the coronary, recycling the rest of its matter into more cells.

Once she was satisfied with her work she closed the edges of the gaping operation wound in the same way and shot a glance at one of the monitoring screens, even though she didn’t really need to. Tork’s heart was beating firmly and steadily, his blood’s oxygen saturation was increasing continuously and his brain waves normalized as well. Two hours had passed, two hours under massive stress from both Pakrit and high voltage.

Jenna severed the connection to the defibrillator with a wave of her hand and the clamps fell to the ground with a loud clang. Only now she noticed how much energy her body had used up in reality and she had to clutch the edge of the operation table to not keel over. There was still enough Pakrit inside her to keep going, but instead of that her cells had used up almost their entire reserves of glycogen and blood sugar, as well as a majority of her fat reserves in order to support their functions. She would need something to eat soon! That was probably the reason Irkens needed so much sugar… like hummingbirds their metabolism was rapidly drained of any energy by the Pakrit so they had to rely on high calorie food that was quickly and completely digestible so their organism wouldn’t simply fail by running out of energy. Which might also be an explanation to why she’d never noticed Set… egesting anything. 

Numbed she caught her breath and didn’t hear the door opening and the doctors slowly entering the room. Nemon was the first by her side and supported her, jerking her from her thoughts. His eyes were steadfast focused on the evenly breathing Commander in bewilderment.

    “How… how did you…” he mumbled feeble and hesitantly placed a bare hand on Tork’s neck. Jenna groaned faintly and clung to Nemon but she was still smiling content.

    “Pakrit… Ria said that it is life. And she was right, though in a different way than she might have thought.” She replied, hearing the echo of her own voice and sank against the Ilenian.

The other doctors now dared to approach Tork as well and quickly checked his vitals.

    “By Se’nheleh*… it- it’s… every splinter is gone, Doctor!” one of them gasped out eventually and stared at Jenna appalled with a mixture of disbelief and fear. “And the tissue is completely restored… I… I have no explanation for this. It’s a miracle.”

His colleagues began to murmur as well and Jenna felt their unease in the room but she was too worn out to greatly explain her methods right now. Nemon tightened his grip on her and helped her towards the door.

    “Please tend to the Commander, allow him to come to but do keep monitoring his heart functions. I have to look after Jenna.” He excused himself and left the operation theater with her.

Outside Reliat, Car and the Zar’tak were already waiting anxiously but Nemon only indicated them to help him with Jenna.

    “She doesn’t look well!” Reliat commented distraught and pressed a hand to her neck while Zar didn’t hesitate long to pick her up and carry her over to one of the stretchers. Car looked back and forth between her and the open surgery tract until Nemon grabbed her shoulder and nodded towards the door.

    “Go on. She is a bit weak but apart from that she’s fine. Your father’s going to wake up soon, you should be with him.” He said firmly and with a last worried look at her friend she left. Reliat was still trying to read Jenna’s vitals but he grew more and more hectic.

    “I… I don’t know what’s wrong with her… oh no, I can’t find it!” he stammered panicked and started to tremble. Nemon placed a hand on his shaking arm and raised a finger to his lips so that his assistant fell silent. A gurgling, rumbling noise tore through the sudden silence and Reliat opened his eyes perplexed while Nemon gave him a knowing smile and patted the back of Jenna’s hand that had jerked to her stomach.

    “I believe she might be hungry.” He noted and she chuckled quietly, raising a thumb.

   
  


After Jenna had eaten through four of the mushy rations in record time she already felt strong enough to be able to explain to Nemon in every detail what she had done to save Tork’s life. The two Ilenians stared at her the entire time in open fascination and didn’t even think about trying to write any of what she was saying down; not even the Meekrob, from whom the rest of the galaxy had gotten a bigger part of their current technology, had ever achieved something even remotely close to Jenna’s abilities.

    “Complete atomic and subatomic manipulation… just through pure telepathic control…” Reliat breathed reverent and cast Jenna nervous glances which she ignored, even though she was sad that the Pakrit’s effects caused such fright in her friends. With a silent groan she rubbed over the small of her back; Nemon had taken another sample of cerebrospinal fluid from her before her meal to analyze it for Scouts, what had come back negative, and they were still waiting for the results of the brain scans he had performed at the same time.

Nemon gave a slow nod: “I believe it would take us decades… maybe centuries to understand all of your powers.” He added not any less dignified and checked the progress of the brain scan on his datapad before switching tabs and quickly taking a look at Tork’s vitality monitors. He exhaled relieved. “The Commander is in excellent condition… thanks to you Jenna. And that’s the only thing that matters.”

Jenna nodded with a sigh and settled somewhat more comfortable on the stretcher.

    “I’m just glad I thought about it in time… without Tork…” She didn’t finish her thought and involuntarily remembered the Tallest’s message that most likely might’ve caused his heart attack. _Turn in the human and we will let you go._

The _Hive_ had said something similar in her dream the other night. _Hand yourself in and I will let the rebels go in peace._ Lost in thoughts she gnawed on her bottom lip

Suddenly the door to the MedBay opened and Set entered, SIR by his side. Apparently the sneaky robot had already told his master what had happened here. When he realized that Jenna wasn’t alone he quickly shut his mouth again and looked around undecidedly, even shoot a pondering glimpse back at the door before squaring his broad shoulders with a jerk and laying his antennae flatly on his head.

    “Jenna, uhm… can I have… a moment alone…” he hemmed and hawed, clearly conscience-stricken and clenched his hands into fists. It was visibly awkward for him to admit to his errors this openly or even mention them for that matter. For a moment she scrutinized him with narrowed eyes that were still glowing brightly under the Pakrit’s influence and she was tempted to just enter his mind and see for herself what was vexing him so plainly but when she looked at Nemon, biding, and he gave her an assuring nod in return she slowly slipped off the stretcher and stepped past Set out the door. The tall Irken needed a second before he followed her with his antennae raised in surprise, but was quick to lower them again when they were facing each other in the narrow, sparsely lit tunnel.

Jenna had to tilt her head way back to look up to him, and her heartbeat immediately picked up its pace in reaction to him towering her. He looked down on her, his crimson eyes glistening from the shine coming off hers as they travelled over every inch of her body; then he nodded towards the exit.

    “Can we… talk in the jet? I… I think I need another minute.” He husked tensed and she cocked a brow at him whereat he screwed his face in guilt. “Please?” he added in English.

Now Jenna smirked lightly and relented with a nod. Set exhaled hard in relief and quickly ordered SIR to wait in his quarter before they made their way up to the surface.

 

   
  


*Se’nheleh (Se-neh-leigh) Ilenian goddess; now only worshipped by a few since approximately 99% of the Ilenians live atheistic because of lacking, scientific evidence in 500.000 years of their civilization that would attest the existence of a deity.    

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Holy sh- I have no idea how I managed to slam this monster out of my fingers in one week! I'm not kidding, this was finished - translation and all - on Friday already! And I'm so excited about next week because... stuff huehuehue~
> 
> I hope I didn't make Jenna's atomic manipulation scene sound too overblown though o.o See you guys next week, love you so much and thanks again for the nice comments!!!


	98. Ultimatum - Pt. 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [C U R I O S I T Y has its very own Twitter now ](https://twitter.com/CURIOSITYupdate) ! I'll post more about updates and funny shit that happens during the writing process or just general headcanons and funfacts I get!!

### \- 31 Ultimatum –

  
**Part 5**   
  


  
The flight field was deserted except for Set’s own jet, and the patrolling lieutenants and officers made sure it stayed that way. Ironhead and Set had done a good job keeping the ranks of the rebels in order, despite the horrible threat from the Tallest, and their smart placement of security forces and high ranking officers prevented any unrests from erupting and members to try and leave the moon. The relatively few soldiers all seemed determined and focused, staring at Irk with grim faces.

Irk’s sun was rising behind the planet, bathing its moon in cold, surreal light. Down in the capitol, slowly coming back into view as the planet finished another rotation around its own axis, it had to be deepest night but the metropole’s center was gleaming with lights like an open lake of molten lava and even from up here Jenna could recognize the massive shadows that had gathered above the city like a swarm of dragons. The mere sight was unsettling even though the bulk of their force was still waiting a few paces farther in space. The armada.

Jenna’s worry grew at the sight, the words of both the Tallest and the _Hive_ resounding in her mind like the eerie echo in her own voice. _Three days._

Set jerked her from her thoughts when he placed a hand on her back between her shoulder blades and gently pushed her through the line of guarding rebels, some soldiers giving him a respecting but also clearly nervous nod as he passed. She could feel the tension within them but she didn’t feel like entering their heads to learn their thoughts; she could well imagine what had them so on edge.

While Set exchanged a few words with the commanding lieutenant on scene and briefed her that he was going to be absent for a little while, Jenna took a closer look at the pitch black jet Set had claimed for himself. She was more than twice the size of _Lightwing_ and although she hadn’t seen any evidence of his reckless fights with the Irkens on the invader himself, his fighter stood testament to the deadly resolve with which he had hauled himself on his own kind over and over, without caring for what would happen to him. The countless scratches, dents and roughly patched fissures under the new layer of black lacquer gave the jet the distinct look of a lowering monster straight from Frankenstein himself.

The broad cockpit canopy opened with a hiss on a silent command from Set’s Pak and Jenna jumped effortlessly from her standing position next to the wheel, pulling herself onto the wide rim surrounding the front of the shuttle. That rim spread further to the back end of the jet, passing into the short swing-wings which were currently folded up into the rump and would only expand once the fighter was in the air.

Jenna hopped down into the capacious cockpit to make room for Set, pushing off the ground with his spider legs and landing with a shrill screech of metal on metal on the rim outside. The tall invader had to stoop as he closed the hatch with one hand, sliding down lithely onto one of the two pilot seats in the same motion, proving just how automatic this sequence of movements had become to him over time. Jenna took a seat on the pilot chair next to him and then waited in silence.

She could sense that he was still not really ready to talk so she put her chin in one hand and let him start and boot up the jet in peace. The only warning was the board computer’s announcement and not a second later the fighter shot like a rocket over the landing pad before it swiftly took to the air. The acceleration was breathtaking and despite the Pakrit Jenna’s heart raced away from excitement for a moment as they tore through the thin atmosphere with engines howling before the eternal silence of space engulfed them. Set flipped a few switches and entered a destination into the autopilot, his stare still stubbornly fixed on the instruments before him but she could see in the way his antennae were slowly pressing against his head that he was bracing internally for the inevitable conversation.

As soon as the murderous acceleration had lessened and the jet was elegantly floating through zero gravity like a train on tracks, Jenna relaxed in her co-pilot seat and drew her legs to her body, pushing one foot under her and resting her chin on her knee to look out of the cockpit. Faint crackling and hissing poured through an open comlink into the silence, occasionally disrupted by sharp status updates before Set quickly turned down the volume and let out an audible exhale.

Jenna was still watching the stars in front of them and, strangely enough, the view of the black expanse soothed and calmed her. She remembered watching the shooting stars with Daniel that night and the way the starry sky above them had caused a strange yearning in her heart. Something bittersweet, slightly wistful, which had quickly been smothered by the feeling of happiness the man next to her had elicited. Before she was snatched away by a blinding ray of light.

When she felt his gaze lingering on her she slowly turned her head and looked at him, her eyes glowing crimson through the dark twilight of the cabin like cat eyes. Set leant back in his chair that he had swayed around towards her and watched her intently but his glare was missing the harshness and mistrust with which he had considered her up to now. Instead he suddenly seemed tired. Tired and worn out.

Jenna turned around to him more and propped her crossed arms expectantly on the armrest of her seat, surprised by her own calmness and the complete lack of anger she had felt before. She could see his thoughts working hard behind his forehead and smirked internally that she couldn’t see smoke coming from his Pak. Her senses were still sharpened by the Pakrit. She could smell him, the slightly alkaline odor of his sweat and heard the silent humming and busy clicking inside his Pak and then in his left arm as he lifted the titanium prosthesis to ran his hand over his face.

    “You… you’re not a clone.” He mumbled barely audible and had to clear his throat as he looked up and immediately avoided her gaze. “After the Tallest’s message… there was no doubting it anymore.”

Jenna’s eyebrow shot up into a sardonic arch but that was all the smugness she allowed herself. Usually she would’ve shot back a sarcastic comment, a _snappy_ comment, but her mind was still working on a different level under the Pakrit’s influence and thus she only absorbed what he was saying and analyzed every tiny nuance in it. The way he reluctantly admitted it, his own almost embarrassing mistake, the guilt resonating unspoken in it and, even a little more restrained, something like silent relief in his breathy voice. Jenna analyzed all this silently and felt sympathy rising inside her. She was still well aware of the fact how severely the loss of her must’ve affected him, so severely that his fury and grief had thrown him back into his old, coldblooded behavior without using any Codes.

    “No, Set.” She confirmed gently and saw him flinching at the echo in her voice. Jenna cocked her head to the side. Although it would’ve been nothing for her she didn’t invade his thoughts, even though her curiosity was killing her. “Are you afraid of me?” she asked quietly instead and his glare shot back up to look her dead in the eyes as he furrowed his brows and slightly bared his teeth at her.

    “No!” he insisted emphatic but then he realized he had snarled at her and raised a hand imploringly. “At least… not afraid of _you_ , but… of what you will _do_.” He muttered on and snapped his head away from her again with an angry whip from his antennae. Now Jenna was confused but still forced herself to not enter his head and simply pull it out of him.

    “What do you mean?” Was it because of Red’s message? Did he really think she would… “What do you think will I do?” Alarmed she tensed her muscles when the Irken suddenly jumped off his seat and threw his hands in the air, a disappointed flash in his eyes.

    “Well, what the hell could I possibly mean? Break up with me of course, tell me to go fuck myself for treating you like garbage! Dump me! Now get on with it already and put me out of my misery, I can’t take this any longer!” he ranted upset and wheeled around to her when she still didn’t say anything, his chest heaving underneath the black overall, fists clenched at his sides and such an agonized expression on his face that she had to swallow involuntarily. Set’s antennae were pricked up and trembled slightly. “I’ve had… had enough time to prepare for this and I didn’t want to stave it off any longer so I thought, _fuck it_ , let her say it at the next best opportunity to get it over with!”

When she still kept quiet his tensed shoulders slumped down and his antennae sank back on his head in defeat. “You’re keeping me on tenterhooks? Alright, I get it, it’s your good right after all.” He added bitter.

That she hadn’t expected at all; Jenna just kept staring at him and then remembered that she should probably say something now! “Set…” she began carefully and saw him tensing once more, bracing himself. “Cut the bullshit.”

He gaped at her aghast and shook his head in confusion. Jenna stood up and was in front of him with two steps, laying her head back and grabbing his right hand, the one of flesh and blood. He wanted to take a step away from her but the seat was in his way so he slowly sank down on it when his legs bumped against it so that he ended up on eye level with her. His were opened wide, big, round and crimson they reflected the light hers were still emitting. He stared at her as if struck by lightning, mouth slightly opened in an attempt to say something, contradict her, but now Jenna used a part of her energy to keep him in one place so he would shut up and listen well.

    “I know why you think I would want to break up with you and apparently you’re well aware of what you did for deserving that. Let me tell you something: I don’t blame you that others succeeded to deceive you. But please stop hiding behind your pride and taking the easy way out of this mess. We’re alone, nobody is going to judge you for what you’ll say, I least of all. I could go and get the answers myself, you know that don’t you?” she asked and briefly let her mind enter his consciousness to underline her words what made him inhale sharply. “But I have to _hear_ them from you. I will sit down again now and then you’re going to tell me what’s on your mind, alright?”

With this she stepped back from him and gently freed her hand from him that he had grasped. Set couldn’t keep his eyes from her when a crimson glow engulfed her frame and Jenna floated two, three steps through the air and elegantly settled on her seat with her legs crossed. It was an almost playful demonstration of her powers but the message behind it was clear: she was by all means able to change tune if he didn’t pull himself together already.

Set looked down on his hands indecisively and she saw in the way his eyebrows drew together that he was thinking hard. Not good; she frowned slightly as well but still let him take his time.

    “I… uhm… I admit I wasn’t prepared for _this_ … I really thought you would just send me packing.” He hemmed and hawed and forced himself to shoot her an apologetic grin which immediately vanished when he saw the icy look in her eyes and quickly looked at something else again. “Okay… where do I start…” his stuttering went on and he started tapping the tips of his fingers against each other.

After two minutes of nothing but awkward silence Jenna stood up and turned towards the console, a glowing hand extended, her face hardened and blank.

    “Hey, what are you doing?” Set asked startled and stood up as well.

    “I’m landing the jet, it’s no use.” She gave back disappointed and changed the autopilot’s destination with her thoughts. The jet veered sharply and then took course back to the rebel base.

    “No, wait, I was just-“, he pleaded and grabbed her arm. Jenna pulled her hand back from his grasp and whipped around to face him. Her patience had run out and the Pakrit’s calm control over her was now slipping.

    “Forget it, Set, you’ve already given up! And we don’t have enough time for you to take so long to take a leap of faith, we only have three days left!” Her voice cut harshly through the cockpit, the echo within it giving her words even more gravity. This was a disaster, after saving Tork she thought everything would turn out to be alright as well, but she had apparently underestimated his pride.   
  
Jenna was just about to focus back on the console when two strong arms wrapped around her and roughly jerked her back until she was being pressed to his chest and he lifted her off the ground. She thrashed in his arms, managed to turn around and pushed her hands against his chest to free herself from his hold. When he didn’t let go but tried to pull her even closer she woke the Pakrit in her muscles. If he really thought he could keep her from ending this sad display with force then he was in for a shock!

But before she could push him away from her for good, metal spider legs shot up from behind his back and encased her even tighter. Set looked her in the eyes and grunted from strain as he fought to keep her in his arms. Jenna hissed indignantly, her fury only spurred on by his insolence, and reached an arm back to straight up punch him in the face. Set realized what she was about to do and quickly wedged his metal arm free from the chaos of arms and legs to grab her wrist.

    “Yes, I’ve given up! I’ve given _you_ up! I left you for dead, just like the others and I will never be able to forgive myself!” He spat out the words like a half suppressed scream and Jenna froze in her attempt to free herself. “You said you don’t blame me but it _was_ my fault that Vaka was able to even get to you even though I’ve told you I would never let you out of sight for one second! I’ve failed you! If I had been with you, you wouldn’t have… I wanted to look for you, fuck, I was close to murder the entire crew in the hangar just to look for you! And every- every fucking day I had to live with this guilt, had to watch how more and more of us declared you for dead. I wanted to strangle them for even thinking something like that! And every next day I’d make plans how I could sneak off the ship and try to find you but I also couldn’t abandon the rebels, I knew you wouldn’t forgive me that because after all it was you who got it through my head that they need me as well!”

Now Jenna stopped writhing in his grasp altogether and just listened silently. Her heart was pounding heavily in her chest and she felt the entire, crushing weight of his guilt and grief devolving upon her.

Set took a shaking breath and cupped the back of her head with a trembling hand to pull her even closer until her cheek was pressed against his collar bone. “I thought I could at least take revenge… on the Tallest, the _Hive_ … but without you we were doomed; we couldn’t find it no matter how hard we looked and we lost our best fighters only during the attempt to find out where the _Hive_ is hiding. Then the armada showed up out of nowhere and the Meekrob sacrificed themselves to shield us with this force field. And then _they_ started sending me those messages. That they had found and killed you. Over and over again… and I _believed_ them, how else could they’ve known that we… that we’d lost you?!”

The Irken let the question hang in the air for a moment and listened to her quiet breath, tried to gather even the last bit of overcoming. When he spoke again his voice was heavy with guilt and shame. “Until today I had lost the will to live. I wanted to die so this pain would finally stop and I wouldn’t have to miss you anymore. It’s a cruel feeling, Jenna. I know now how you’ve felt after the- after _Feorn_ died. I know how you felt when _I_ nearly died. And I know you’ve been _there_ , I know now why you have these scars on your wrists. But in the end you didn’t give up… you stayed strong and instead looked for a solution or allowed the people you cared about to ease your pain. So I wanted to stay strong as well – no – I just pretended to be strong enough to keep living without you and told myself I would avenge you by… by killing them all. But in truth I was just using every fight as a chance to try and kill myself. I was weak, I _am_ weak… I always thought I was strong but in reality you only _made_ me strong, you showed me that I could be more than what my Code dictated me all those years and without you…” He swallowed hard and exhaled a hiss. The hand on the back of her head buried in her short hair and he pushed her up so he could hide his face in the crook of her neck and shoulder. Only now did Jenna notice the tears streaming down her face and she returned his embrace as well as the constriction of his arms and spider legs would allow it, wedging her arms out from between them and gently placing them on his cheeks.

    “I’m sorry Jenna… please forgive me that… that I was so weak, that I couldn’t save you, that I-“

She interrupted his stammering with a soothing hush but he shook his head and pulled away from her to look her intently in the eyes. “No, please listen: I love you. And the first time I saw more in you, that I _wanted_ you for your sake alone, was when you tried to tear your wrists on those cables and simply wouldn’t submit no matter what I did to you! You’re strong. You’re not very tall or physically strong but you had this unrelenting will, and this indomitable strength impressed me, fascinated me and made me downright obsessed with you! And I _doubted_ you. Instead of immediately pulling you into my arms when you stood next to Tork on the flight field I let the Tallest’s lies influence me like… how did you put it that one time? _Like a beaten dog that returns to his owner although there’s only more beating for him…_ You can’t forgive me this, I can’t forgive me!”

He suddenly let go off her and did a few steps back. Confused Jenna stared up to him when she slipped out of his arms and on the floor, seeing the sad look in his eyes.

    “You meant well getting me to admit all this, but in the end I know you won’t forgive me…” he muttered under his breath and quickly averted his gaze. He had grabbed the backrest of his seat with his metal hand while stepping back and the carbon splintered under his tightening grip. “We should probably get back, Tork is going to-“

    _“You think you already know how I will decide?! You think you can see inside my head? I told you to cut the bullshit!”_ Her explosive advance into his consciousness made him stumble back as if hit by a physical punch and Set fell silent in a second with wide opened eyes when Jenna let her unleashed mind crash over him, the force enough to make him fall on his knees before her. She was mad, and hurt, for a moment there she really thought he would finally turn the corner but now her patience had really run out.

With slow, composed steps she approached him and took his face in her hands. In his scared eyes she could see the gleaming light her own eyes were emitting in her fury.

    _“I will show you how I have decided.”_

With this she rested her forehead against his and embraced his mind almost gently with her own and simply let love filter through to him: Every happy moment they had shared, every friendly, loving word, every second of their ragged, heated breaths, every husked, whispered and panted name. Jenna let warmth fill his mind, the feeling when his arms would wrap around her body so tightly, like two strong promises to always keep her safe, the trust she felt even though his sharp teeth were scraping over the delicate skin of her neck, the beating of her heart every time she had to look up to him and feel his eyes traveling over her. She let music flow into his head. Mad World, I Follow Rivers, all the songs she ever sang to him.

And she forgave him. Over and over she wove those words and the feeling into her mental message. _I forgive you, Set. Thousands and thousands of times. You’re mine and I will always be yours. So please don’t push me away. Let me love you._

Jenna felt Set’s shocked self calm down and then abandon every last bit of resistance as he allowed his mind to float in the warm stream of thoughts and feelings she kept him in. When she opened her eyes again his embittered face had relaxed in her hands and he was slightly smiling under her thumbs gently stroking over his cheekbones. Satisfied with herself she slowly withdrew her mind from his consciousness, although she didn’t really want to let him go just yet, allowing him to gradually come to. Set exhaled hard and cautiously opened his eyes to look up to her. His gaze was composed, calm and determined. With a stifled chuckle he turned his head, placing a hand over hers to plant a kiss into her palm.

    “So, was that clear enough or do I have to repeat myself?” she asked smiling and let her free hand brush over his antennae what made him shiver. The crimson eyes flashed at her from beneath half opened lids.

    “Well, let’s just say I wouldn’t fight it.” He growled pointed and pulled her closer. Jenna laughed, audibly relieved and returned the embrace whereat Set straightened on his knees, wrapping his arms around her to summarily pick her up and carry her back to the seat. Happy Jenna snuggled up against his chest and drew her knees to her body while the Irken sank down on the chair with her on his lap. Her hand ceaselessly ran over his broad chest, his shoulder and the arm he kept around her to press her closer to him, trying to touch as much of him as she could reach. Where their bodies met Jenna felt the warmth build up and noticed her heartbeat distinctly slowing down, just as her breathing. Now she was finally really home.

    “That’s more like it.” She sighed relieved and craned her neck to get to his and kiss him there. “Set?”

He hummed inquiring and looked down at her. Jenna’s face was solemn again and he furrowed his brows involuntarily. “Were you… really going to attack me that night?” she asked faintly and huffed alleviated when he shook his head.

    “I wanted to use the Mnemograph on you.” He admitted and she raised an eyebrow.

    “Even though you said the real Jenna would’ve never allowed it?”

He grimaced at the memory.

    “Yeah. I know that makes no sense. And I don’t know whether it really would’ve helped me if the Zar’tak hadn’t interfered. Same as I can’t explain why I still thought you were a clone even though he was with you and had found you with the Prerk. I’m sorry.”

Now Jenna shook her head.

    “You were mourning. H- humans who mourn, _really_ mourn, often do irrational and almost crazy things. The Tallest maliciously took advantage of your grieving state of mind. It’s okay, Set.” She reassured him again and palmed over his right arm once more. “I’m here, you’re here with me and that’s good, that’s all I want.” She suddenly fell quiet when the ultimatum the Irken leaders had announced came up in her mind again. Set noticed her mood swing and guessed just as quickly what likely had caused it.

    “Don’t think about it. Not yet.” He rumbled deeply and kissed the crown of her head. She nodded and edged closer to him despite there being not much more free room to scoot even closer to him. Then she felt his thin lips nibbling at the short strands of hair and she laughed out, lifting her head from his chest.

    “Taste good?” she asked amused and snickered at his thoughtful expression. Set ran a hand through the shock of hair, first with, then against their grow, causing a slight shiver to run down her spine, and the crease between his eyebrows reappeared.

    “I miss your hair.” He admitted and her smile turned into a crooked grin.

    “They’ll grow back.” She promised him.

    “When?” He wanted to know impatiently.

Jenna snorted and kissed his lips before settling down in his arms again. “It’ll take some time, dummy. My hair grows relatively quickly but it’ll still take at least a few stellar cycles to get back to _that_ length." His renewed frown probably was supposed to say that this was too long for him.

For a while they stayed silent like this, happy to be with each other once more and both still slightly numbed by the aftermath of Jenna’s powers. Set’s metal hand on her hip rubbed gentle circles over her outer thigh.

    “You…” he breathed out of the blue and Jenna raised her head to look at him but his gaze was going over her out of the cockpit. “You can read my thoughts right now, right?” His question sounded a little bit sheepish and she sensed the coming request more than she actually read it in him. Jenna nodded.

    “Only if you’d allow me to. I know how uncomfortable you were when I did it in the gym.” She replied softly and squeezed his wrist. Set smiled briefly before continuing: “It’s just… what you did just now, what you showed me… it felt really, really good. I would like to return the favor.”

Surprised Jenna sat up completely and untangled her legs until she was straddling his lap to get a better look at him. The earnest face of the invader had turned a darker shade around his cheeks and she needed a moment to realize that he was blushing. Then she smiled elated and could only nod excited. Weakened from Tork’s surgery and the previous contact she had to close her eyes and focus on her mind leaving her body to connect to his consciousness once more. She found him nervous as soon as the contact was there and calmed his agitated mind with gentle nudges and also physical touches, while at the same time lowering the walls around her own mind.

That was actually something she had trained with Zar. It was like changing from polite, but superficial small talk to a deep, emotional conversation, in which you expose and reveal more and make yourself vulnerable at the same time. But she trusted him, god she trusted him so much and her heart did a blissful jump into her throat when she felt Set’s emotions slowly seeping over to her.

Jenna uttered an involuntary sigh and her eyes snapped back open, locking with his. A wave of warmth washed over her and enveloped her body and mind like a tight embrace as Set literally poured his heart out to her, every fiber of his being focused on her and what he felt for her. To him she was like the air he needed to breathe, something he’d missed all this time while never really knowing what it was. She made everything make sense.

More and more images, impressions and feelings overwhelmed her and with every bit more she was drawn closer to him till she finally kissed him, overcome by the love and desire he felt for her. Set wrapped his arms around her when she sat up to get to his mouth and returned the kiss fervently and passionately. His tongue immediately darted between her open lips and coiled around hers, eliciting stifled high pitched sighs from Jenna and a deep moan when he opened the zipper of her overall with one hand to cup one of her breasts and knead it greedily until her nipple poked hard against his palm.

    “Set…” she managed to gasp as she broke free from the kiss breathlessly, her breath hot on his skin – hot and alive. _More!_ She begged him in her thoughts and he grinned wolfishly when he heard it through their connection.

    “Don't you worry, love...” He husked back and dipped his head down to her neck in response. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The happy reunion weeee, well, after some sticks and stones mind you~ Next update will have some smut as you can probably tell already ;)  
> Also that last part was kind of a little test run for "Telepathic Intimacies", hope you liked it! 
> 
> And then there's the thing with this ultimatum... wonder how that's gonna turn out, huh. owo


	99. Ultimatum - Pt. 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is basically just smut. Which is great! Haven't had that in a looooong time it feels like. Poor babies, all smut-deprived, but I got ya *winks stupidly*

### \- 31 Ultimatum –

  
**Part 6**  
  
_A few seconds later - Set's fighter - Moon of Irk_

  
  
Jenna panted for air when the sharp teeth closed around both sides of her throat like the jaws of a bear trap and a long, thin tongue lapped over her skin in lavish, wet circles. Set felt it in his own consciousness just what this sensation caused in her and he moaned in disbelief against her neck. Small, skillful fingers wrapped around the sensitive stalks of his antennae and their touch immediately sent waves of pleasure through his body with every little stroke.

Jenna felt it all, every small touch she gave him, like it was her own body she was pleasing just as she felt for the first time how it felt for Set to touch her, to squeeze the soft roundness of her breasts in his hands and feel the warmth of her body in his palms.

When he also shoved his second hand into her open overall to tease both her nipples with his fingers they gasped out in unison. Set leant away a bit to look into her eyes and this time he didn’t flinch from the eerie glow, because in his mind he could clearly see her real eyes.

    “Do I … do I really feel that _good_ on your skin?” he asked her breathlessly, still slightly disbelieving, but Jenna just smiled and dealt his antennae another playful stroke that made him throw his head back and, in turn, educed a soft whine to pour from her lips as she felt the sensation herself.

    “Only if that felt just as good. Which I can confirm by the way.” She answered smug and uttered a surprised noise when his titanium hand buried in her short hair to pull her roughly back against him until her lips smashed into his once more. While Jenna’s tongue was busy exploring his mouth as if kissing him for the first time, Set’s free hand peeled her out of the overall, pushing the tough fabric from her shoulders and all the way down to her elbows. Then his hands were back on her breasts again, kneading, rubbing and pinching her stiff nipples till her breath was shallow under his lips and he could feel the frantic pounding of her heart against his palms. She was perfect, oh so perfect and just for him!

Set parted from the kiss, his teeth scraping over the delicate skin and he dipped his head down to the crook of her neck where he sucked a big, dark spot he could see even in the dimness of the cockpit. Then another one, deeper, right on her collar bone – she hissed at that – and her fingers dug sharply into the muscles of his shoulders as he went further down still, pulling her up in the motion so she was kneeling over his lap and he could finally get to her breast to take the hard pap into his mouth and maul the sensitive bundle of nerves with teeth and tongue alike, slowly but surely overstimulating her.

    “Set… oh fuck!” Her high pitched whine made his antennae tremble at the sound alone, every lap that his tongue danced around the dark circle of her teat sent another shock through her entire body and, encouraged by her wanton noises and the way she pressed against him, he wedged his right hand into the crotch of her overall to slide his fingers in between her hot folds. The invader growled when he felt the sticky wetness already pooling between her legs and closed his fingers around her inner pair of lips, trapping them between his digits to gently pull and rub them, exposing her swollen clit to the rough skin of his palm, watching and listening to her immediate, unbridled reaction.

He knew he could make her cum right on the spot with just a few strokes from his fingers and maybe one, two gentle bites to her breast if he wanted to. She was so very sensitive in this state, every nerve of her body ablaze from the Pakrit and for a second he genuinely wondered why they hadn’t tried this out sooner, but then any further clear thought was wiped from his brain when Jenna closed her lips around one of his antennae and sucked it lightly, causing him to see stars before his eyes rolled back.

The bold hand between her legs slackened for a moment when she punished his sensible organ like that and now Jenna couldn’t keep a self-satisfied grin from curling her lips around the black stalk. Apparently he had already forgotten that she literally knew what he was thinking in every little detail. Making her cum on his whim my ass! Now it was her turn to unravel him.

Slowly she sank back onto his lap and felt the evidence of his arousal pressing against her groin through the fabric of his overall. Jenna trembled despite herself as she carefully eased herself on his errection, sliding over his pulsing, entrapped cock, the friction so good even through two layers of cloth it made her gasp out loud and Set groan darkly. His hands immediately wrapped around her hips, yanking her down harder on his lap while thrusting upwards into her, responding to the motion.

 _Shit, we have to get out of these stupid clothes or I’ll go insane!_ , she thought frustrated and let up on his antenna to pull open the zipper of his overall and cover the smooth skin beneath in fiery kisses. He let her, but once she had managed to open his suit all the way he grabbed her tight with both hands and stood up from the seat with her in his arms. Jenna squeaked in start – not very sexy – and clutched him with hands and feet alike, alarmed by the sudden vertigo of shifting positions so fast.

The Irken chuckled lowly and pressed another kiss to her lips before turning around and dropping Jenna onto the pilot seat. With wide opened eyes she watched him kneel in front of her and start pulling her overall all the way off her body until she finally sat completely naked in her seat. She knew what he had in mind, dammit, she could literally see it play out before his inner eye! And yet she began to tremble in silent anticipation as he sat back on his heels to eye her greedily. His eyes were downright devouring her, every inch of her, from the tip of her short hair down to her toes that now curled under his hungry, intense glare.

When he reached a hand out for her Jenna flinched eagerly and her pupils dilated behind their crimson shine. Set noticed her reaction and immediately paused in his motion. Slowly a sadistic grin crept over his face and he pulled the hand back to rest on his own thigh. Jenna’s mouth fell open in a silent cry of protest and she sent a real tirade of swear words over the mental contact but that only made his grin grow wider, and perhaps even a little more evil.

Again he raised his hand and her heartbeat picked up its pace again with a kick-start when he wrapped it around her calf to pull her a little closer towards him until her ass was barely on the edge of the seat and she had to sink against the backrest, her eyes again round, agog with expectation. But still he kept her in suspense.

Tantalizingly slow his hands brushed up from her ankles over her calves, tickling the back of her knees and wandering over the sides of her thighs before dropping back down, starting the game again. Jenna’s groan was dripping with frustration and she stretched out her hands in demand for him. Set grabbed her hands, intertwining his fingers with hers and suddenly advanced on her, his elbows propped up to both sides of her waist and she saw the flash in his eyes before he lowered his head again to suck little marks on her breasts. His tongue shot out between his thin lips ever so often, flicking against her nipple, teasing it until she was writhing beneath him, trying everything to finally get him to cut to the chase!

Set let her wiggle under his teasing touches for a moment before he slowly opened his eyes again, shooting her another wolfish grin.

    “Something _specific_ I can do for you?” he asked played innocent and she all but screamed at him. Of course he wanted to make her beg for it!

    “Eat. me.” She managed to hiss under her breath and saw with a sweet twist inside her guts how his shark like grin split to reveal sharp teeth and he slowly went down on her body, deeper, dealing her small bites on the way that made her flinch and twitch in her seat.

    “With pleasure…” the invader husked rumbling and she heard – oh fuck – she _felt_ the carnal desire in his voice with every fiber of her body as he wrapped his arms under her knees, grabbing her hips and pushing back just slightly to press his open mouth against her pussy without a warning, letting his long, thin tongue sidle through her lips until it reached her clit, drawing big, lazy circles around it.

Jenna threw her head back with a heated yelp and arched her back to come his way, to press her mound needily against his mouth, hands scrabbling at the backrest, the armrests, trying to hold onto something as his tongue sent her into a thoughtless fit of gasps and moans and incoherent babbling, disrupted only by more frantic cries whenever he’d change the flicks against her clit or close his lips around the burning center of her lust to suck it sharply.

    “S- Set, oh god, baby, please! Pleasepleaseplease-“ she whimpered ecstatic, tears collecting at the corners of her eyes because it felt so good, so, so good as the hot spring in her loins coiled more and more, ready to let go, ready to obliterate her conscious thoughts with pure pleasure. Set moaned against her pussy, tongue lapping up her juices noisily and he shot her a glance from beneath narrowed eyes, piercing her and causing her face to flush hot and red.

 _Don’t you dare. I say when you’re done._ While he didn’t send her these explicit lines she could sense it in his mind, in this fucking glare alone and she nodded quickly and tried to hold her orgasm back as best she could, but oh god, this fucking bastard didn’t play nice at all! Now there was a finger pushing into her slick entrance, curling up against the spongy roof of her pussy and making her choke back a cry as her hips twitched into his mouth again and Set firmly placed his free hand over her lower stomach to keep her in place while his finger set a quick, hard pace along with that wonderful tongue still pulling at her clitoris.

Jenna focused back on the mental contact, trapping Set’s mind in the raw, carnal loop of her own sensations and his teasing faltered for a second when his brain got overwhelmed by those unfiltered impressions and he took another second to steady himself again but that was all the time Jenna needed to push him back and slide down from the pilot seat. Before Set knew what was going on she was kneeling in front of him, a hand shoved into his overall to grab his cock and start stroking it. His eyes snapped back open and he inhaled sharply, pointy fingers digging into the soft flesh of her hips as he pulled her against his body, his hips rocking into her hand.

    “Something… specific you want me to do?” Jenna purred, craning her neck up to bite his jaw line and pumping him faster, her fingers running over the soft line at the underside of his dick with every stroke what made his cock pulse and twitch towards her in want.

    “Yeah…” Set grunted back at her, hoarse, his hands shifting their grip from her ass to her waist again, suddenly grabbing tight and lifting her up like a child. With a hungry groan he laid her back on the seat, ripping his overall down some more until his erection sprung free and he quickly moved back between her legs, shoving his pelvis into hers and sliding his cock over her wet entrance, causing another sweet moan to pour from her lips. “Enjoy.”

The fact that he couldn’t say it without keeping a straight face himself made Jenna laugh out after a second of processing what he had just said. Her entire body curled from laughing so hard and before she could even worry about having offended him in a way, the Irken started snorting himself before bursting out with a real, heartfelt laughter.

    “You- you did _not_ just say that. You asshole.” Jenna panted after a few unsuccessful attempts to catch her breath. Set was still chuckling over her, his shoulders shaking with more barely contained laughter. She groaned and slumped back against the backrest. “I mean, really? You really thought that was a good idea?” she sputtered out and fell back into a laughing fit when the Irken simply doubled over, sinking back on his heels and crossing his arms on her stomach to hide his laughter behind them. His fitful breath tickled her skin and she couldn’t help but gasp at the feeling. Set fell silent hearing her pant like that and peeked at her from behind his arms before blowing against her lower abdomen once more, making her flinch and utter a strangled sound.

Jenna sensed the mischief in his mind before it even reached his eyes and sat up quickly. “Oh no, don’t you da-“, too late, he was already pressing his mouth against her belly, blowing a raspberry on her skin. She squealed out in start and tried to push him away with hands and feet but Set had way too much fun making her scream like that for once, and only when she had shrieked herself breathless did he let up on her with one of the softest, satisfied smiles on his face she’d ever seen.

    “You… you just totally ruined the mood, you know that?” she grumbled under her breath, her voice still too shaky to give it any real level of scold. Set just shrugged and bent over her again, slowly closing the gap between them to run his teeth over her collar bone.

    “Worth it. Lucky for you I also know how to build it back up, babe.” He was practically growling next to her ear and indeed, she already felt another pleasant twist in her insides as his hands slid up against her sides, making her wince at the feather light touches of sharp fingers bound for her breasts again.

    “Since… ah! Since when do you call me b- babe?” she breathed faintly, her heart sputtering back into a gallop when his thumbs, one made of cold metal, brushed over her nipples once more, starting the fire in her abdomen anew.

    “Hmm…” Set mused, seemingly distracted, and paid more attention to her breasts, cupping them both and squeezing them together to run his tongue over her stiffening nipples, leaving a glistening trail of saliva on her bruised, reddened skin, and Jenna made a whining sound in her throat. “I’ve been listening to an awful lot of your human music and I think I must’ve absorbed the language a bit more… thoroughly.” He went on, his right hand once again traveling down her body and between her legs to run his thumb over her still so swollen clit. Now that caught his attention even more and he gave her another smug, awfully _knowing_ grin.

    “You’re still so ready…” he murmured affectionately but not without the usual edge to his voice that made her squirm in her seat again. That particular edge that didn’t bode well for her yet at the same time promised her the fricking heavens on earth! Especially when accompanied with that particular _glare_ , as if he was about to just pounce on her and fuck her mercilessly into the cushion, preferably with his hand squeezing her windpipe shut and a cruel kiss sealing her lips.

Jenna only realized that she had sent this very… visual idea straight into his brain when Set’s briefly dumbfounded expression changed back to predaceous, lusty and hungry invader.

    “Oooh shit…” she managed to squeak in the faintest of voices and yelped again in start when he flipped her over on her stomach, her knees not even reaching the floor so she was somewhat dangling from the high seat,  twisting her arms around on her back and pinning them together with one hand. His titanium hand slowly caressed her neck, metal fingers lightly pressing against her throat to make her breath hitch and causing her to swallow hard. Jenna keened when she felt his throbbing cock pressing past her clenched thighs to rub against her pussy, slicking it with the wetness accumulating there again at his mere touch. He teased her with his tip, gently probing her entrance before pulling back again, rubbing his length against her.

    “Set… _please_! I want… I want to feel you inside me!” she moaned into the seat, wiggling her hips back needily.

With a voiceless snarl he obliged, pushing into her in one swift motion, his girth finally filling her out so good she cried muffled as his thrusts shoved her forward into the cushion. He pulled back slowly, reveling in the friction from her inner muscles clenching around his cock, trying to keep him locked in there. His mind was overwhelmed by what they both experienced while their minds were still connected, the feeling of his dick plunging into her hot, wet warmth and at the same time the unbelievably satisfying sensation of her being filled out by him, being pushed down by his hands and for a moment he halted in his thrusts, doubt clouding his mind when the memory of their first time resurfaced inside him along with the pain and violence he had wreaked upon her back then.

He literally had her in his hands, her body so small compared to him, so tiny and fragile and even though she was much stronger with the Pakrit fueling her… he could seriously hurt her with just too much pressure or-

    “D- don’t stop, oh god, please don’t you ever stop Set! It’s okay, I _want_ this!” she panted quickly, her consciousness wrapping around his again in a reassuring embrace of love and desire, and he let go of his self-restraint, hips slamming against her ass in a fast, hungry pace that buried his entire length in her pussy and stretched her walls far enough to cause a mewling moan from slipping her, clipped by each violent thrust.

Jenna was already so close, her entire being focused on the burning gradually building up in her lower abdomen again, the angle his cock was ramming into her just right, his girth enough to stimulate even the last of her most sensitive spots until she felt like she was going up in flames. Everything about this was turning her on more and more; the sounds – his hissing, ragged breath brushing against the crown of her head as he bent closer over her, the wet squelch each time his dick pushed back into her and the sharp slapping sound of their bodies against each other – almost enough to make her come on the spot but he had told her he’d be the one to decide when she was done. And she was happy to obey.

A quiet, drowned out voice in the back of her electrified brain was musing about that she had apparently developed some weird fetish from Set’s dominating nature but then her world capsized again, jerking her back into the present, and Jenna found herself half sitting, half lying on the seat once more, her legs thrown over Set’s arms with her knees almost grazing her ears and for a second she was grateful that the Pakrit made her a lot more flexible as well before the sharp pang of his cock, pushing into her even deeper, caused her to cry out.

Set moaned lowly, a dark rumble over her, and braced his elbows on the armrests for support as he fucked her hard into the seat. He had slipped out of the top part of his overall completely now, shoulders shining with­­­­ sweat and Jenna watched the precise play of sturdy muscles beneath his skin, not aware that she was licking her lips at the sight. Of course he noticed, he always noticed, and the self-satisfied, shit-eating grin returned to his face, curling his thin lips into another teeth-baring smirk.

    “You like that?” he panted, not even remotely able to mask how close he was himself and she saw the way his antennae curled up against his head. He was _really_ close. Jenna clutched at him, her hands grabbing frantically at the nape of his neck to pull him down and kiss this smug grin. The invader grunted strained under her lips, wrapping one hand around her neck to keep her in place and also slowly start squeezing her throat. She gave a strangled noise, trying playfully to bite him but he just bit back harder, drawing blood, never ceasing in his fast, deep thrusts. Jenna’s oxygen was running low and she fought the urge to simply slow her metabolism with the Pakrit, instead sending the excess of it into her nervous system.

She couldn’t tell if that had been a mistake or the goddamn best idea ever because the sudden increase in sensitivity kicked her into the most intense orgasm ever almost instantaneously. Her walls contracted around Set’s cock so hard she could faintly hear him gasp out before he came inside her with hot spurts, cursing crudely in Irken before pushing into her with a few more, exhausted thrusts, the hand around her neck slumping limply to her shoulder, finally allowing her to utter her own breathless sounds of satisfaction.

Her head was swimming, drugged by their shared climax and so empty that she had not a single thought inside her mind except for the ecstatic feeling of relief and sated desire.

    “I love you.” She somehow managed to croak, her voice strained and throaty. God, had she been screaming the entire time? Her vocal cords sure felt like she might have.

    “I know.” He uttered back at her with a moan. “Shit, I _know_. I love you too. So… much.”

Set pulled away from her sluggishly, wrapping his arms around her and resting his head on her shoulder right above her chest, his lips pressing little kisses on her collar bone where he had bruised her skin.

They allowed each other a few minutes, or maybe a whole lot more, to catch their breath and come to again. But eventually Jenna’s hand, that had been palming over his broad back, found its way back down his body, closing around his still erect cock, wet with their juices, and started stroking it again until he twitched towards her with new fervor. The Irken slowly lifted his head from her chest and narrowed his eyes at her.

    “I get the feeling we’re not done yet, huh?” he stated, his own hands already tightening their grip around her body as well. Jenna gave him a silent shake of her head, eyes blazing with Pakrit.

    “We’ve only just started babe.” She purred and raised herself up to kiss him.

 

In hindsight she was glad that she hadn’t actually changed the autopilot’s course but rather sent it to Set’s destination over an alternative route. Otherwise the rebels at the flight field would’ve been forced to witness another two hours of the unlike couple celebrating their reunion.

Instead the fighter had touched ground on the other side of the moon, averted from Irk and wreathed in entire darkness with one of the most beautiful views at the stars Jenna had seen in a long time. The somewhat bumpy landing had carried them both off their feet but once they had recovered from their initial shock, and made sure that none of them had been injured, they picked right up where they’d left off. And it had taken a long time until they eventually were just too exhausted to savage each other once more.

Now they were both slumped in the other seat, sprawled over each other and close to falling asleep. Jenna stretched her tired limbs a little bit and settled down more comfortably on Set’s lap again, who jerked from his half-sleep and palmed over her back with a low hum, his other arm wrapped around her hip to keep her close to his body.

Somehow he had managed to materialize her iPod from his Pak and connect it to the board computer. The soft music from the speakers was so quiet and soothing that they were drifting in and out of sleep, exchanging tender kisses or murmured words of affection whenever they caught the other one awake.

But the mood was slowly shifting. Yet none of them wanted to address the looming shadow that was gradually taking over again, although it was enough to keep them on their toes, and more than once did Jenna catch Set eyeing the dark sky above them with narrowed eyes and antennae raised high on alert before slowly settling back into the seat, grabbing her a little tighter. And she was to no small amount relieved that the Pakrit had worn off by now and their minds were once again separated so she could hide her own thoughts better from him. Better, but not entirely.

    “I told you not to think about it.” He suddenly said, voice a deep rumble in his chest that vibrated against her skin and caused her heartbeat to flutter in her chest. Feeling guilty she pecked his naked chest and shook her head.

    “I know. Sorry… but, I’m just so afraid, Set.” _That didn’t even_ sound _honest, Jenna!_ “I just got you back and… god, three days! I don’t know what we should do, what we could do!” She went on before he shut her up with a long kiss, growling indignantly at her words. Set only released her when her tensed shoulders drooped under his hands and he heard her sigh softly against his lips. Pulling away slowly he eyed her alertly.

    “You have nothing to be afraid of, Jenna. I won’t let anyone hand you over to them. I won’t let anybody take you away from me ever again.” He said firmly, pulling her protectively to his body and for a second she wanted to believe him, wanted so much to believe that he was enough to make everything alright. “You brought the Prerk along and with their help we can create a big enough distraction to get you to Irk with a small team and destroy the _Hive_ once and for all. I promise we’re going to be okay.”

She nodded, her throat feeling too tight to reply anything. Maybe he was right, maybe the Prerk were the edge they needed or maybe it was her who’d tip the scales. But for now she just wanted to spend the rest of the time they had left with him, or at least until Tork would order them back to the base to set up a final plan of action.         
  
  


The crimson orb was looming over her like a single eye, except it wasn’t an eye. It was a giant Pak, massive in its size but she could still see the three characteristic plates through the blinding glare it was emitting.

She was alone with it, alone in the darkness and petrified under its watching mind, trapping her own and rooting her to the spot where she stood, wherever that was.

    _“Come.”_  The _Hive_ said, beckoning her with its disembodied voice booming from all around her. _“You know you can’t hide anymore. You know you can’t run from me anymore, human. Give in. You can prevent so much pain and grief with just one decision. My offer still stands: Turn yourself in and I will let the rebels leave. I will let your invader leave as well. You have my word, I take no interest in squashing puny insects that will perish either way. It’s you I want. Join me and save your own kind.”_

She wanted to fight it, tried everything to break free from the paralysis it kept her under, desperately trying to wake up and escape this nightmare but all she accomplished was a low, dark chuckle resounding from the nothingness around her.

    _“You’re so foolish… you haven’t learned anything.”_ All of a sudden the voice swelled into a roar and the giant Pak seemed to grow, towering over her until she feared it would crush her. _“You can’t stop me. You can’t kill me! The Meekrob tried, oh they tried! And what did they achieve in the end? Nothing! Destruction! Their own pitiful demise! Do you really think you can do more than their entire civilization? All you can do is give. in. You don’t have much time left-”_

Something tore through the darkness for a split second. A flash of green, along with a push against her trapped consciousness and the _Hive_ hissed furiously before Jenna’s vision blurred and darkened –

And she woke up with a startled gasp, flinching hard in her seat and trying to make out her surroundings in the darkness that had her still engulfed.

A surprised noise somewhere above her head made her freeze and then everything came rushing back to her when two strong hands, one strangely cold and metallic, grabbed her arms and lifted her up.

    “Ssh, hey. It’s alright, I’m here.” Set mumbled drowsily, palming over her skin to shake the nightmare from her. “Had a bad dream?”

Jenna was still breathing hard and finally remembered how to nod, clutching at him and squeezing his body tight to make sure he was real and she was really back. Set noticed the tears before she did and chirped quietly at her, drawing her even closer to him. “A really bad one, huh?”

Again she could only nod and press her face against his chest to hide her terrified expression. She felt cold sweat covering her from head to toe and the awful feeling of being tainted, her insides pulled out into the open.

    “C- can we get back?” she choked out between panting intakes and Set tensed for a second before slowly relenting, huffing a heavy sigh.

    “Yeah… we should probably get back anyway. You sure you don’t want to take a few more minutes first, though?” he tried hopefully and it made her smile involuntarily.

    “I’ll be fine, Set. It was just a dream.” She assured him, surprised how steady her voice sounded. Steady and determined. “We have to get ready.”                            

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ayyy wasn't that fun? well, before the Hive walzed in and ruined the mood that is. Ugh I had way too much fun writing this, especially Set breaking character for once . 
> 
> For those of you who're sensing a considerable lack of Telepathic Intimacies, don't you worry your pretty heads. I just... went totally overboard with that one-shot (we're currently at 13 pages and still going... uhm... ye) but I'm fairly sure it will go up next Sunday, so stay tuned for that and feel free to [follow the twitter](https://twitter.com/CURIOSITYupdate) for getting the latest updates!


	100. Choices

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In case you missed it: [Telepathic Intimacies](http://archiveofourown.org/works/8309419) is out!  
> [C U R I O S I T Y Twitter](https://twitter.com/CURIOSITYupdate)
> 
>  
> 
> **Next chapter will be up on the 6th of November!**

###  **\- 32  Choices -**

_Half an hour later – Moon of Irk – Resistance Base Camp_

Jenna was checking the fit of her overall for the tenth time now, trying to see if there were still some… suspicious traces somewhere on the black fabric. Set watched her from the corner of his eyes while slowly steering the jet to the landing pad, and he couldn’t help the fact that a broad, absolute ridiculously broad, grin had managed to plaster itself firmly on his face since they both had managed to recover from Jenna’s nightmare, lifting the mood with easy conversation and playful bickering. He had her back. It was everything that mattered to him at the moment. He finally had her back and she hadn’t sent him packing. She hadn’t even been properly mad at him to begin with!

He made a mental note that he should probably offer her some of his Pakrit more often if it turned her so sympathetic and gentle, yet he dumped the thought in the same heartbeat. She would most likely also be able to tell what he was trying to accomplish with that and kick his ass without much ado like she had back in the rebel base’s gym. Although he had to admit, he had sort of liked it, this unexpected role reversal and having near to no chance against her. Of course his pride forbade him to tell her, that was something she would have to read his mind for if she wanted to know.

With a suddenly nervous, scrutinizing glance to Jenna he assured himself that her eyes were still their normal green and no crimson gleam had crept into them again. She noticed him peeking and lifted her gaze inquisitively from her hands currently fastening the buckle of her armor belt. At first Set wanted to look away, caught, but when he saw the way her pupils dilated slightly – just a hint, but they only did that when she was looking at _him_ – he returned the quizzical stare from her eyes calmly and the smile returned to his face. His free hand found its way onto Jenna’s thigh and he heard her soft gasp for air at the touch of his fingers curling around the softness of the inside, gently squeezing the muscle, close enough to her groin to feel the warmth radiating against his skin.

    “Don’t you dare, mister.” She hissed warningly, though it didn’t even sound half as stern as she probably had intended it to, which was why he chuckled lowly, leering tellingly at her before turning his attention back on the grounding approach and pulling his right hand away again to grab the cyclic and have the heavy fighter jet under full control on the crowded flight field. Jenna made a disappointed noise when his hand let go of her thigh and Set’s antennae twitched despite himself. But that was something he had gotten used to a long time ago: his body always reacted to her, whether he wanted it or not, and it did so ever since she’d woken up in his examination room. He had wondered if humans were possibly drenched in pheromones, the way she had tricked his brain, just by doing something like _breathing_ , into wanting to touch her, feel the warm, delicate skin and test it, doing whatever was necessary to get more of those melodic sounds in varying octaves out of her.

His own actions, from the time before their trip to the recluse, were still frightening him, now that he was aware of what he had done to her, a being with feelings of her own, and how he would have felt if he had been in her place. That was actually the most surreal aspect of his situation: he could suddenly _imagine_ how it must’ve been for her. Now probably even better than right after his decoding. Or… what had Red called it? When he had faced him on the _Massive_ ’s Command Bridge, bleeding and with no way out?

_How did you manage to isolate your Pak?!_

He had said isolate, not decode… so it really must’ve had something to do with that transmitter Zim had removed from his Pak. Suddenly more of his memories from the fight emerged from the depths of his subconsciousness, locked away by the traumatic pain of having his arm torn off and then replaced by metal, and he was relieved his hands were moving on their own to ground the jet, even though the phantom limb of his left arm seemed to throb dully within the frame of his metal prosthesis.

Red had said something about a Nexus; he had said that they would restore the severed connections of his Pak to the Nexus… and that the _Hive_ was controlling the Irkens as a swarm through the Nexus. Maybe-

    “Set? Are you alright?” Jenna’s worried voice jerked him from his brooding and he nodded automatically, before grounding the jet with a last maneuver on the flattened surface and then leaning back in his seat to really look at her.

    “Yeah, I’m fine. I just remembered something… I think it’s important. Somehow.” He shrugged, clueless. But when he noticed the soft onset of a crease forming between her eyebrows he sighed defeated and patted his knee invitingly. She first shot him a skeptical glance, then the landing field, and then him again, though this time she had an eyebrow cocked at him and he pouted when she decided to stay on her own seat. “Suit yourself…” he groused played sulky (okay, maybe not entirely played) and cleared his throat. “Back on the _Massive_ , during our attack, Red did not only reveal the _Hive_ ’s existence to me, stupid as he is…”

Jenna stifled a snort at the dripping scoff in his voice.

“Oh, he said even more, in fact, he wouldn’t stop _monologing_ , I thought I was gonna _die_!” Set couldn’t help it, he had to downplay the gravity of the situation if it meant to hear her laughing like that. It felt good. He suddenly realized that he hadn’t seen her laugh that often. But rather crying. If there was any chance to change that then he would take it, dammit! But he already got serious again, recalling what the Tallest had, in fact, revealed to him.

“Anyways… he talked about this Nexus, and that I had isolated my Pak from it. Zim told you about the transmitter he removed from it, yes? Well, maybe _that_ was what kept me from just ignoring the Codes any further. Red… he talked about the Nexus being some sort of network through which the _Hive_ controls the Irkens as… as a swarm. And that would have to mean that it’s not just the Codes turning us into emotionless drones, but something keeping the Irkens connected to the _Hive_ somehow as well. Through these transmitters perhaps.”

    “Something like a surveillance system?” Jenna interposed and he nodded excited.

    “Yes, something like that. Or a network in the literal sense. Like the terminals on my ship from which you could access the main computer. And by removing the transmitter from the Pak, you practically cut a terminal’s connection to the network.”

Now her nose crinkled a little and the crease between her eyebrows deepened in concentration when she continued that thought.

    “But that would mean Ria and Zim used different approaches to get rid of the Codes… Okay, let’s see if I got all that: Zim removed the transmitter from your Pak and the _Hive_ , or Red, noticed it, otherwise he wouldn’t have known that your Pak had been isolated from the Nexus, considering he even used this exact expression. It’s probably a similar effect to when an Irken dies because they also thought Zim was killed by the Enforcer they sent after him, or they would’ve hunted him down by now. And they couldn’t have known from Ria that it’s possible to isolate a Pak from the Nexus because in that that case they would’ve known long before we showed up. They even reprogrammed her, or at least tried to, so she had to be still connected to the Nexus.” Jenna fell silent and shrugged helplessly. “Perhaps… damn, perhaps Ria really did manage to delete all the Codes and block any further ones without having to separate herself from the Nexus and the _Hive_. But I have no idea how she would’ve been able to do that.”

He heard the sadness in her voice even though she was trying to hide it. His hand slipped over hers and clasped it gently, the tiny, soft hand completely disappearing in his.

    “Do you have any idea how happy I am I abducted you out of all humans and not someone else?” he mumbled quietly after a pause and felt her fingers move under his in response before intertwining with his three digits. Jenna was smiling again; good. “I don’t think anyone else would have been as strong as you, as resilient and brave. You know I spent some time scouting out your Earth before I… took you. I saw the wars you’re leading against each other, the destruction of your own planet and I just couldn’t stop laughing. Well… asshole-Set couldn’t. You know what I mean. _Before_!” he added with a snarl when she gave him that sassy eyebrow again along with a grin so telling he could literally hear what she kept on the tip of her tongue. “I remember thinking: Actually I don’t really need to do anything to conquer this planet, those earthworms are already doing a pretty good job on their own. I’m just gonna go and get some snacks to go with the spectacle! To me you all were just brainless, primitive fleshlings, destroying themselves in their own stupidity and ignorance. And when I… when I used the Mnemograph on you, you weren’t like that at all and even after everything you were still… different. Sure enough, you knew about the fights, the violence and the brainless, primitive fleshlings driven by greed and fear and self-interest, from what I saw in your memories… but _you_ weren’t like that and that made me angry. I was never wrong! Now I’m just glad you decided I was worth disabusing. Though I still can’t wrap my head around how you managed to figure that out.” He said softly and lifted their clasped hands to plant a kiss on the back of her hand.

Jenna was looking at him out of round eyes and her mouth opened slightly to reply something when they noticed someone sprinting over the flight field towards their jet. It was Ink.

Set sighed annoyed and shot her a last, hungry glare.

    “Looks like we’re back in time for roll call. You sure you’re alright?” he asked, hinting at her nightmare episode. Jenna just nodded, she really didn’t have a choice.

 

Before Ink arrived they had already climbed out of the cockpit and Set was close to rolling his eyes when Jenna went red almost instantaneously and, again, made a fuss of smoothing down her overall. Very discrete. Though it was kinda cute and of course he felt incredibly smug at the thought of him being the reason for her flustered state. He felt the self-satisfied grin tugging at the corners of his mouth and he had to pull himself together not to grin at the dark, reticent Vortian like a complete idiot as he came to a stop right in front of them.

    “Tork wants to see you.” Ink announced and gestured at them with a short jerk of his head to follow him, before already darting off again, and they were forced to run after him. Whereas Set was really just sluggishly trudging along behind, after all his long legs covered almost thrice the distance Jenna did with one step.

    “How is he?” she called out concerned and activated her armor. The invader had to bite back a snide comment. For a soldier she _really_ was loath to running on her own.   

Ink grunted, but launched into a real answer when he heard the impatient hiss from the giant Irken in his back: “Back on his feet again. Doctors still think it’s a miracle. Least ’s what Ironhead said. Still in the Bay though. Nemon’s orders.”

Jenna hummed her approval. She knew how determined Tork was when it came to the safety of the Resistance and how he’d neglect his own health over it. And she was grateful she had been able to save his life. She didn’t even want to think about what would’ve happened if he hadn’t survived the attack.

Hectic whispering tore her from her thoughts and she would’ve stopped if Set hadn’t been right behind her, why she only turned her head around to see some of the ground crew members talking to each other who seemed to have entirely forgotten about their work. At first she was alarmed, but the glances they shot her were reverent and full of admiration and she returned their shy waves with a confused smile.

    “They know you saved the Commander.” Ink explained to her when she approached him about it while they made their way down the ramp to the subterranean part of the base. He stopped in front of the heavy metal door to pull out his Chronometer and wave it around before the door opener and then turned around to her. His ice-blue eyes narrowed slightly as he looked her over from head to toe. Set’s Pak gave off a sharp snapping sound and the Vortian raised his eyes, unperturbed by the threat display, to look the bristling invader in the eyes and hike his shoulders.

    “Easy big guy, won’t harm a hair on her. Almost forgot how jealous you get. Just wanted to thank you.” He finally said to Jenna and, again, it was what he didn’t say that she understood. Ink was Tork’s personal guard, it was his duty to protect him with his life, no matter from what and no matter if he’d die himself. She could well imagine how helpless and, most of all, useless the quiet Vortian must’ve felt seeing his Commander and close friend like this and not being able to help him. She also knew that he and Ironhead were more than just Tork’s bodyguards: Car had told her once that Tork had saved the two of them from an Irken research institute, following the rumors about some missing aliens, back when he had still been looking for her mother. The Irken scientists had performed countless brutal and horrifying experiments on them, although Car hadn’t been able to tell her if some of them had maybe even entailed Pakrit. It was one of the reasons Ink didn’t talk much.

When they finally arrived in the MedBay, Jenna wasn’t all that surprised to see Tork indeed back on his feet. Literally.

He was pacing back and forth while talking quietly to a group of other high ranking commanders and scientists, probably the members of the council he never had the chance to introduce her to until now. The Captain was among them as well and he gave Jenna a broad grin once he spotted her. Immediately every head in the room turned towards them but before anyone else could react, the old warrior had already shoved past them, wrapping a pair of steely arms around her middle and sweeping her off her feet to crush her in an embrace that made every bone in her body crunch, despite the armor.

    “There she is! Darn it, lassie, I knew you’d make it! Well that’s what I call loyalty to the cause! Ain’t gonna let either traitorous kidnappers or getting shot into space by traitors stop her! It’s so good to see you back in one piece! Gave me a real start when you just showed up with a damn Prerk nest at your back! Shit lad, why didn’t we bet again?!” he barked at Tork, his booming voice so loud Jenna didn’t even notice the outraged snarl coming from Set whereat the Captain dropped her onto the ground again, laughing resoundingly.

Tork just grinned crookedly and ambled over to them. The other commanders had at first been completely paralyzed but now a dignified murmuring spread among them as well, which Jenna quickly ignored even though she couldn’t deny that her intervention on Tork’s surgery must’ve been pretty spectacular and she was in secrecy a little proud of herself after all.

    “What he said, kid. We already said hello.” Tork grunted with an almost fatherly smile and briefly pulled her towards him to hug her as well. The hand in the nape of her neck squeezed for a moment and she felt him exhaling hard beneath her arms. “But I be damned if you didn’t save my life back there.”

Jenna felt her cheeks growing warm when Tork parted from her and she could see tears glistening in his red eyes for the split of a second before he blinked and they took on their usual sharp intelligence.

Then the Commander shot Set a glance and grinned at him. “Heh, hope you enjoyed your honeymoon, from now on there’s not gonna be any more hanky-panky on duty.” He commented aridly and the more than obvious hint in it made Jenna groan, turning possibly even redder and impending to light up in flames when she heard the Captain wolf-whistle quietly.

    “We’re not-“ she wanted to defend herself, against better judgment of course, but when she turned around to get Set to support her, she broke off mid-sentence and had to pull herself together to not snort with laughter. The Irken was flashing his narrowed eyes at the Commander, yet he was looking like he wasn’t really sure whether he should be offended or not. He probably didn’t know the meaning of honeymoon, but Jenna was sure he understood hanky-panky.

Tork allowed them a brief moment to revel in the sight of Set’s absolutely irritated glare before he got serious again and cut to the chase.

    “Well, maybe you _will be_ soon, provided this entire operation doesn’t go completely down the drain. Gents…” With this he turned towards the other commanders and scientists. They had all gathered around one of the few floating stretchers, which Tork had summarily repurposed into a conference table for his war council. He gestured at Set and Jenna to join him by his right side before he propped both his hands on the metal surface of the stretcher, bending over the countless datapads they had arranged on it. There was a tense, breathless silence right before he spoke again: “We need a plan. We have three days to come up with something, or the Tallest threaten to wipe us out with a full scale organic sweep. This is bad. And just to make one thing clear: Jenna’s not going to get handed over to them.” He added with a teeth-baring grin and thoroughly studied the faces of every one present while they were already visibly thinking about a way out of their desperate situation. One of the scientists, an old Ilenian, raised his palms towards the ceiling, as if he wanted to hint at the force field or some higher power.

     “We have to put our faith in the Meekrob. I am sure that the shield will even withstand an organic sweep.” He expressed strident over the general mumbling. The other commanders shot him more than doubting glances and even without having to look at him, Jenna could tell exactly what kind of expression Tork had just now. He sighed lowly and then rummaged around the pocket of his overall for his Chronometer.

    “Reliat, I believe we could use our expertise on the Meekrob now. And please bring Nemon and the other two with you.”

While they were waiting for the newcomers to arrive, the commanders quietly talked to each other in little groups to sketch out multiple raw plans. The old Ilenian coughed disgruntled, crossing his arms and muttering to himself. Jenna watched them for a moment before she turned to Tork with her voice hushed.

    “What happened to Vaka?” she asked tentatively and ignored the growl ripping from Set’s chest as soon as he heard the name of the old commander. Tork regarded her with a mixture of surprise and concern, but leaned in on her to whisper back at her: “We sent him with the other civilians to one of our outposts. He’s awaiting his execution should we return.”

Now Jenna raised an eyebrow and recoiled slightly from Tork, but the look on his face was solemn. “Exactly. _Should_ we return. _If_ , that is. Given the current circumstances, we might not. In any case, the other rebels will need a leader. I don’t like Vaka, and I don’t think that’s a secret, he doesn’t like me either. But he’s able. Before Xakahr became Admiral, Vaka himself was in debate for becoming the next leader, and I think he’ll never forgive me for cutting in line. Just as I will never forgive him for nearly killing you.” Tork’s eyes were flashing furiously from the shadows of his horns the ceiling light was casting over them. “But apart from all that he worries about the Resistance, us as a community, and I know that he will take care of their safety should we fail.”

Jenna nodded, lost for words. Tork’s motives really made sense to her and she was relieved to know that Vaka hadn’t just been left to the same fate as the Kexian. She knew the haggard commander had acted out of his thirst for revenge but she probably would’ve reacted the same way if someone had killed her only child. That was something about the Pakrit she had noticed with fascination: It left its traces, even though they weren’t visible. She could hardly believe that she was still only 22 years old; with everything that had happened since her abduction, she suddenly felt so much older.

The door to the laboratories slid open with a hiss and Reliat entered together with Car and Nemon. A murmur went through the ranks of commanders when they saw who else was following close behind. The Zar’tak’s sight was still highly unsettling for those who didn’t work with him on a daily basis.

Jenna felt something drawing her towards the telepath and when her feet moved on their own she knew what it was. Before she fully realized it she had already wrapped her arms around him, looking for comfort but also to thank him, pressing her face into the rough fabric of the overall he was wearing. Zar carefully placed two paws on her back and two on her head to soothingly pet her when her quick intakes became even more frantic.

    _“I saw it. It was much stronger this time, I don’t think you would’ve been able to wake up on your own.”_ He hummed inside her head and she knew he was talking to her alone since the slight static was missing in his voice.

    “You got me out of there, Zar. I know it was you, the green flash…” she hissed under her breath, her voice tense and shaking, she didn’t want the others to know about her recurring nightmares – visions – of the _Hive_. They would only think she was about to lose control again. The telepath nodded above her in agreement, obviously having read her thoughts, gently pushing her back at arm’s length to stroke over her head at the same time and lift her chin.

    _“It might be stronger here, but I still have some aces up my sleeves as well.”_ He quipped drily and then joined her at the table between Set, Reliat and Car, letting the gaze of his five eyes slowly travel across the faces of the aliens present before they emitted a pulsing shine and a light static discharge shook the air. Jenna was grateful that he was drawing the overall attention to himself for the moment, so she could calm down in peace even though Set was shooting her distinctly scrutinizing and worried glances again.

    _“Esteemed commanders, unfortunately I have to object your colleague’s theory. The shield my sovereign created will not withstand a full scale sweep. In fact it will only last for three more days before it collapses.”_ The Zar’tak explained straightforwardly und impatiently chattered his jaws at the panic taking hold of the commanders, which Tork stopped with a warning harrumph.

When it was quiet again he nodded first at the black alien and then Nemon’s assistant.

    “Reliat, you discussed this issue, I assume.” He said towards the stout Ilenian and Reliat turned a little pale around his nostrils as he suddenly became the center of attention.

    “Oh, yes. We have. Well, me, the Zar’tak and Dr. Nemon, that is.” He took one of the many datapads and activated its hologram function to project the screen over the middle of the stretcher. It showed the excerpt from an audio file as well as different graph readings of a wave length analyzer accompanied by short segments of text explaining each diagram. Beneath it they could see a schematic depiction of the moon they were on with the shield surrounding it, looking like a swirling ocean of clouds and hurricanes in infrared radiation.

    “This is the shield the Meekrob created from their energy. We know that, up to now, it’s kept us safe from any kind of threat, be it laser projectiles from the planetary turrets, missiles from enemy fighters or even antimatter-warheads from the armada’s Viral Tanks. Yet we couldn’t explain how this shield works exactly since smaller jets and Voot runners can exit and reenter it without any harm, even those of the Irkens. Luckily the Zar’tak could further illustrate the mechanics behind it.” He sheepishly gestured towards the tall telepath and he inclined his head before raising his arms, his eyes glowing ominously green, although they seemed a tad bluer than before.

    _“This shield is not just a mere force field. It contains the entire power of my sovereign, minus the part they entrusted me with to return Jenna to the Resistance. It’s made of their very essence, their soul even. They sacrificed themselves with the intention to protect you, thus this shield possesses a form of rudimentary intelligence and can discern enemy fire from that of our own forces. My sovereign might have relinquished their physical from, but that doesn’t mean they’re already gone. Yet their power is rapidly waning, I can feel it. The part of them inside me grants me some insights on the shield’s status. The Tallest must know as well that the shield is only going to last for three more cycles.”_

At this point Reliat cut in again and pushed on the audio file: “Exactly. It already seemed strange to me that the Tallest would willingly give us this much time to… hand Jenna over.” He cast her an apologetic glance but she nodded relaxed. “Uhm, yes. They’re taking the risk of granting us a chance to come up with a plan to escape them or even put up a fight. This is why I listened to their broadcast again, very closely, and with the help of our techs I was able to enhance the part of the Tallest’s conversation you couldn’t hear before.”

Anxious silence hushed the room as the voice of the Tallest sounded from the nothingness and Jenna felt an ice-cold shiver creeping up her arms beneath her overall.

    “You _don’t_ hand her in, in… let’s say… uhm… hm? _Three_ days?! Don’t you think that’s a bit _long_?!” They knew this part alright, but what came next sounded a bit scratchy due to the strong amplification of the audio but they could follow the dispute well enough.

    “Hey, it wasn’t my idea, it was _his_!” Purpled defended himself, hissing suppressed, and Jenna didn’t like the way he was stressing that ‘his’.

    “Huh. Well, did he tell you the reason, too?” Red wanted to know, clearly irritated and now they could hear the second Tallest snicker.

    “Mhm, he said the shield that this Meekrob created is gonna collapse on its own by then. He can sense it.” – “And he’s telling us _now_? Dammit, we could’ve taken them by surprise, crush them before they even realize what the fuck is happening! Augh, fine, whatever, I’ll ask him later.” Red’s fury was clearly audible but so was the sly threat in the voice of his twin: “You know, you should be more careful with what you mouth.”

    “Yaya, shut up now-“, Red put him off and then stepped closer to the comm again. “Alright, three days. We don’t have the human by then: Complete organic sweep.”

Here Reliat stopped the playback and looked around expectantly.

It was Set who found his voice again first: “The _Hive_ knew about all of this from the start.” He ignored the terrified glares and just looked at Tork, who gave him a nod of agreement. “It knew that Jenna had been separated from us on our way to Irk and that she’s back now, which was why the armada got here so quickly and they still waited until she was back before they demanded to hand her over. It knew how long the Meekrob’s shield would hold and ordered frequent attacks as a distraction to wear us down and diminish our numbers. How the hell could it have known all that?!” he demanded to know from no one in particular because everyone else was still frozen by the shock of this revelation. Beside Set Jenna had started shaking violently.

    “He.” She breathed strangled and every pair of eyes darted to her but she kept staring at the hologram of the audio track. “Red called the _Hive_ ‘he’. Him. _His_! Why does he have a gender? How can a synthetic life form possess a consciousness evolved enough to assign itself a gender? What the hell _is_ the _Hive_?!”

Now that was something nobody would have a likely answer for. For a few breaths it stayed dead silent in the MedBay’s front hall until Nemon cleared his throat and pulled another datapad from his coat, immediately connecting its screen to the hologram of Reliat’s research and calling up the results of a medical scan. Jenna recognized the image at once: it showed the Scouts inside her own brain, standing out against the overall blue of her neural cells in red blinking dots.

    “I might be able to explain why the _Hive_ knew about Jenna being separated from us and getting back. We had hoped the cryostasis would neutralize the Scouts, the nano organisms in Jenna’s brain, and their impulses. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case. The scans we did of her brain after her return and the analysis of their impulse-rate have revealed that they were active the entire time she was frozen.”

Concerned muttering stirred the commanders and scientists, who had immediately started to take notes of what Nemon was explaining. Jenna stared at Nemon in shock and now couldn’t keep her composure anymore: “What?! I… Nemon, this can’t be right!”

The Ilenian looked back at her with raised eyebrows, his four eyes set on his young student in earnest surprise and confusion.

    “What do you mean, Jenna?” he asked softly, seeing her inner turmoil on her face. With a guilt-ridden look towards Set and then Tork she dropped her tensed shoulders.

    “I… ever since I drank Set’s Pakrit to destroy Lenka’s station I keep having these… nightmares. I see the _Hive_ in them, though at first I didn’t know what I was dreaming or where these dreams were coming from, but then it- he showed me what he planned to do, how to destroy us. All of us.” She felt Set shifting beside her, his metal hand running over her back, trying to soothe her. “The queen of the Prerk experiences something similar, she calls them visions though, and other than me she can control when she has them and when not. But she also knew that it was the Scouts and their impulses that cause me to… lose control over my own body and attack everything around me, on an order from the _Hive_.”

In short words she explained to the commanders how the queen had forced her to drink more Pakrit in order to prevent the Scouts to take over her and throw her into another frenzy, and what had happened afterwards. When she told them about the _Hive_ ’s command to kill the queen, and how her body had reacted, everyone gasped for air, immediately reminded of how Rex had died, but they calmed down eventually when she asserted them firmly that she had not once lost control after that and that the nightmares had only started again after she landed on the moon. Nemon, Reliat and the other scientists listened very closely, but Jenna couldn’t answer their questions about how she had managed to survive the allegedly deathly dose of oral Pakrit or why the visions had only started now again.

    “It must have something to do with the Prerk hive, I can’t explain it anyway else.” She concluded helplessly. Nemon gave a slow nod, he seemed to have gotten an idea about how this was all related.

    “I agree with that. You said they have hundreds of Irken invaders stored away in primitive cryo-pods without their Paks self-destructing? Fascinating…” Then he turned to Tork, who immediately returned the gaze from his Chief Medical Officer and already nodded before the Ilenian could utter a word.

    “I get the feeling we should finally get the queen of the Prerk at this table. Call it a hunch, but she could be able to explain some of this.” The Commander growled darkly and ignored the collective groan following his words.

Jenna heard Set hiss in fury and had to gulp herself at the thought of him meeting the Prerk. Or probably worse: a very familiar captain of them. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 100 chapters!! Wowie I never thought I'd make it so far, thanks again you guys for all your support and for joining me on this crazy journey!
> 
> I'm so hyped about what happens next, I just jumped out of the shower, setting my entire living room under water because I came up with the most badass line for Set in one of the last chapters hooo boi I can't wait let's go let's go people!!!


	101. Choices - Pt. 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [C U R I O S I T Y Twitter](https://twitter.com/CURIOSITYupdate)

###  **\- 32  Choices -**

****  
**Part 2**   
  


  
The commanders were all talking to each other anxiously, vocally noting several times that they didn’t think it’d be a very sound idea to immediately invite the Prerk to the moon, without preemptively negotiating something like a peace treaty with them first. After all, the solitarily acting ships and fleets of the Prerk hive had raided the Resistance’s black market routes quite a few times in the past, making off with desperately needed ordnance of weapons, tech and general goods before reinforcements had arrived.

Jenna was still trying to shake off the sudden feeling that something wasn’t right, when she promptly realized what was bugging her about Tork’s suggestion!

    “Wait, we can’t get the Prerk queen down here!” she blurted out and Tork flinched beside her in start before his eyes narrowed warily at the human.

    “Why not? Do you think she’ll have a problem with leaving her nest and trust us?” he wanted to know, already bristling, but Jenna quickly shook her head and shrugged at the same time.

    “I don’t think so, but she’s more than five meters tall to begin with, so she wouldn’t even fit in any of the flat buildings we have here. Second, she has _eggs_ at the moment and I don’t suppose she can leave them for a longer amount of time.” She explained and Tork’s tensed expression fell from his face, replaced by a somewhat deadpan look.

    “U-huh.” He just uttered matter-of-fact and cocked a brow. “And what do you propose instead? That we go up to them? I wouldn’t like the idea of holding our war council in the middle of the air field to be honest.”

    “Then what about the _Vengeance_? Her hangar is big enough to give the queen enough space to move around, and if we connected her to their nest she could easily travel back and forth between them. Furthermore it would be a more neutral place for negotiations than immediately inviting her into our base.” She added diplomatically and the Captain nodded with a concurring grunt.

    “Aye, sounds reasonable enough for me. I won’t say I’m thrilled with the idea of having those… aliens on my ship out of all, but I trust Jenna.”

Somehow he never really managed to talk in a normal, not booming volume and Jenna felt involuntarily reminded of a pirate captain, used to shout orders to his crew against a raging storm on the sea in a loud voice, hoarse by rum and shouting. That caused a grin to curl her lips and the flash in his dark, violet eyes showed her that he’d been watching her. Jenna was under the impression that Commander Gorn would enjoy the stories about human corsairs.

    “Alright, Jenna, I’ll leave it up to you to invite our guest. You’re the only one that ever had any contact with the queen and, as I’ve heard, you fought hard to earn her trust. It would be stupid to send anyone but you.” Tork said at that and pushed away from the stretcher, straightening. “Your jet has already been fueled up and is waiting for you on the second air field.” He had barely finished his sentence when Jenna already felt Set’s metal hand coiling around her waist and her eyes darted up to his face. The Irken had both antennae flatly pressed against his head, an iron determination in his magenta eyes as he turned to Tork.

    “I’ll go with her.” It wasn’t a suggestion, but a fact, the way he growled it.

Jenna rolled her eyes and freed herself from his grasp what immediately drew his attention to her so that he didn’t notice how Tork rolled his eyes as well.

    “No, Set. I know - you just want to make sure I’m okay, but I can’t possibly say how the Prerk might react to the sight of you. Or you to theirs.” She pointed out and saw she had put a real damper on him with that one. He just stared at her in disbelief for a short moment, his eyelid twitching, indignant, before he waved his hand into the Zar’tak’s general direction, never looking away from her.

    “Then take _him_ along at least! They gotta be used to his _sight_ by now!” he snarled outraged and Jenna was about to agree, resigning, when they heard the mental snort and looked at the telepath in surprise.

    _“Jenna is quite capable of looking after herself, she doesn’t need a babysitter.”_ Zar replied calm, but firmly, and Car spat out a short, derisive laugh, what earned her a cross glare from Jenna. Set was already drawing breath to voice his opinion on the matter, when Tork suddenly groaned annoyed and turned away from the group with a nod towards Jenna to follow him.

    “ _I_ ’ll go with her if it makes you happy. C’mon kid.” He grunted and stopped dead in his tracks the second a whole choir of shouted protest was raised behind him. The Commander clenched his eyes shut, agonized, and slowly turned back around to the council members, one eyebrow raised. Jenna, who knew all too well how he felt right now, grinned commiseratively.

    “Sir, you can’t enter the Prerk’s nest, it would be a risk far too great!” one of the Vortian commanders urged. When Tork’s crushing glare struck down upon him, the speaker recoiled and looked over his shoulder to get his colleagues’ support, but they were wise enough to keep quiet and look anywhere but at him. “I mean… you just recovered from a dangerous… surgical intervention. If the both of you went to the Prerk they’d have our two most important players in this war as possible hostages! There’s no way we can risk losing you!” he added frantic. Tork smiled at him, showing pointy teeth.

    “Well, I feel quite flattered. But, just like the Captain, I, too, trust Jenna and her judge of character when it comes to dangerous aliens. The best example for that is standing right next to me. No offense, Set.” He added towards the invader, who gave a groused - clearly insulted - “none taken” back, trying again to pull Jenna towards him until she gave his fingers a furious smack, immediately screwing up her face in pain and regret. Of course she had hit his metal hand and it felt like she’d just smacked an iron bar.

    “Thanks for the vote of confidence, Tork.” She hissed under her breath and shook out her smarting hand, not without an angry side-eye in Set’s direction who at least had the decency to chirrup apologetically. Then she let her gaze wander over the commanders. She saw the concern on their faces, the fear. The message from the Tallest, the revelation that the protective shield would collapse in three days and the overall hopelessness of their situation had brought them all to the verge of despair, on the brink of panicking, and only their trust in Tork – and now her as well again – was still preventing that. Of course they would do anything to not have this tiny spark of hope taken from them on top of that. Once again she felt a slight discomfort at the thought of having so many people count on her (after all, Quor had openly called her a lucky charm) but now she could no longer deny that they had a justified reason to do so.

    “It might be a big risk,” she started, now addressing the collected aliens, “but at the same time it’s a sign of huge trust that we’d give the Prerk if we both sought out their queen to ask her to join our war council. It will make her feel honored and respected, something the Prerk weren’t granted in a long time. Besides, the Prerk have, by all means, a strong sense of honor themselves, however a bit… different than the conventional concept. They never break a word once given.” She explained calmly and smiled confident.

Beside her, Tork chuckled contented.

   
  


The commanders (and Set) finally relented and got on their way to take one of the Captain’s transporters up to the _Vengeance_ while Tork showed Jenna the way to _Lightwing_ , having the ground crew ready one of the fighters next to her so they wouldn’t be forced to share the claustrophobic cockpit together.

While they were waiting for Tork’s borrowed jet to be fueled up, Jenna activated her suit for the first time since she’d gotten it back, and stopped short for a second. The black, heavy armor smoothly wrapped around her body as usual, but its fit felt somewhat different than before. Maybe Trook had made some new adjustments to it while she was gone? She decided to definitely visit him after the war council and ask.

    “Nice speech you gave there, Jenna. I gotta admit, for a while I wasn’t really convinced myself whether or not we could really trust the Prerk. They’ve just been too… troublesome in the past. Always seemed to appear in the most inconvenient moments. Many of us hate them almost just as much as the Irkens.” Tork mentioned while she was still inspecting her suit and Jenna raised her eyes from the armor.

During her very first encounter with the Prerk she had come to know them as just a race of aliens who would take any chance to fight the Irkens that presented itself to them. Sure, they had attacked Set because he was traveling alone and they had outnumbered him and apart from that they displayed a clearly opportunistic behavior as well, without any regards for others, but they were only doing it because their people had almost been eradicated by the Irkens while the Meekrob, the alleged saviors of the galaxy, had abducted them for their Pakrit experiments. Over time things like that would inevitably make you very cautious and ruthless towards other species in order to survive.

    “They’re really just misunderstood once you get to know them.” She just replied and remembered how friendly the queen had been to her, without really asking something in return, how absolutely mad with rage she had reacted when Jenna attacked her and how Korr had offered her to leave Set to his fate and go with the Prerk back then. “They’re used to live off the scraps others leave behind, but beyond that they’re actually really nice, caring and share pretty much everything when you meet them with the same kindness and respect. And even after I attacked their queen; the fact that I spared her life just strengthened their trust in me. To be honest, I’m something like their stand-in queen now.” Jenna explained with a smile and nodded when Tork gestured at her to get into her jet.

The Commander gave her the advantage and followed hot on her tail as she sped _Lightwing_ over the runway and then pulled up hard to leave the moon’s atmosphere and head towards the back side where the Prerk nest was still floating in the darkness like a giant asteroid, only dimly lit by the sun shining from behind them. Jenna saw the giant ship from this perspective for the first time and inhaled audibly.

The nest was like a floating fortress, a construct as big as the _Vengeance_ but much higher in build , in the rough shape of a rhombus, with sharp peaks and spires, jabbing into every direction and giving the nest the look of a mirrored castle, complete with towers and oriels. And now she understood why the Prerk didn’t use any metal or synthetic materials: the stuff that made up the inside of the nest, the tunnels and their walls, also acted as a hull for their ship, like a flying termite hill. Apparently it was sturdy enough to even withstand the harsh conditions of space as well as the unfathomable strain of FTL travel. Never let it be said again that the Prerk were primitive!

Tork whistled acknowledging over the comm as if he had been thinking the same thing: “Shit… do you have any idea how many of them live inside that thing?” he asked intrigued and she shook her head automatically before remembering that he couldn’t see her. His jet closed up on _Lightwing_ and she saw the lights of his displays through the tinted glass of the cockpit.

    “Not really… I didn’t even know that it’s _this_ massive! I only saw the innermost part of it, a few chambers and tunnels. I never even got anywhere near those towers. But I guess it has to be multiple millions of them, if the rest of the nest is only half as populated as the part Korr showed me.” She answered and raised her gaze when something broke away from the chaotic unity of the nest and approached them. It was one of their bigger ships, about as large as the one that had attacked Set and her back then. It had been perfectly hidden within the spires of the nest, looking just like a part of the outer hull until it actually moved.

Now a little nervous after all Jenna cut back her velocity and steered her jet directly towards the new ship, a sign that she’d seen it. Tork fell slightly back behind her, then her comlink crackled and she opened the channel for Tork to listen in with her.

    “Ssssmall creature!” Korr greeted her happily and she relaxed at once.

    “Hey, Korr! I’m here with the leader of the Resistance, Commander Tork. We’d like to present an offer to the queen. May we come aboard?” she asked just as friendly and heard the Prerk chatter in surprise.

    “Of courssse. Follow.”

The big Prerk ship lazily swerved around and steered towards the midsection of the nest. Tork mumbled into the comm: “Huh. Okay, I hadn’t thought it would be _that_ easy… was that the Prerk who attacked Set’s ship? I had no idea they’re able to even _speak_ Vortian.”

Jenna laughed. It was understandable that Tork must’ve imagined the Prerk a lot more different, after everything she and Set had told him about Korr and the attack.

   “Jep, that’s the one. You can’t imagine how glad I was when I met him in the nest. He is, far as I know, the only one of them, beside the queen herself, who can speak and understand Vortian. He’s really nice.” She gave back and got another puzzled noise out of her Commander.

 

They followed Korr to a big opening in the middle of the ship, hidden from foreign eyes beneath an overhang and closed off by a similar membrane like the queen’s chamber. But instead of waiting for it to open, Jenna flew straight at it and grinned to herself when she heard Tork’s insecure “Uhm” coming from the speaker.

    “Just keep following me, nothing’s gonna happen.” She reassured him and the nose of her jet already collided with the wall. Just like a few cycles ago, when she had left the nest, _Lightwing_ didn’t tear the membrane apart, but simply slid through it like it was made of thick slime. Behind her the barrier closed instantaneously before Tork followed in his jet. That way the nest could spit out an entire army of fighters at once without ever being hindered by airlocks.

Jenna carefully piloted _Lightwing_ through the opening, oriented herself briefly and then grounded her jet next to a few smaller Prerk fighters, taken off their brackets on the walls and the ceiling for maintenance purposes, where they were hanging in their thousands in file. Since Prerk were able to scale vertical walls and even the ceiling without any trouble, they created a lot more free space with this kind of storage.

A smaller transporter that had detached from Korr’s ship followed shortly behind Tork and landed in a sweeping arch beside Jenna.

    “Alright, I take you to queen now.” Korr announced and just a second later the canopy of his strange jet opened. It faintly reminded Jenna of a trilobite or a horseshoe crab because, just like everything in the Prerk nest that wasn’t built from the liquid sludge, it was made of something like chitin and relatively flat, making it look almost like an actual UFO if it weren’t for the chitin spikes everywhere.

Jenna jumped from the wing of her fighter when the big Prerk climbed out of his jet, ran towards him and got pulled into the second bone-crushing embrace today. When Korr finally put her down again he lifted his gaze and gave Tork a respectful nod.

    “Commander Tork. Isss big honor for our people you here. I am Korr, firssst captain of hive. I take you to queen. Sssshe be very glad you here, sssshe already waiting for messssage from Resssisstance.” He explained sternly, and a little pointed, and for the first time Jenna experienced Tork not only lost for words but also visibly conscience-stricken, before he managed to compose himself again and return the nod.

    “Thank you very much for having us. I have to admit, the last hours have been a bit… critical for me and I apologize for not contacting you sooner. We’re grateful you’re here.” He finally replied and the Prerk hummed satisfied.

    “You are forgiven. We have great ressspect for rebelsss. You fight for freedom, for usss all. Follow.” With that he led them out of the hangar and through the contorted, complicated maze of tunnels – deeper into the nest.

The other Prerk warily kept their distance and barely showed themselves, yet they could clearly hear them chatter and hiss in the walls and the adjacent hallways. Tork couldn’t help looking back over his shoulder now and then, and keeping close to Jenna in general, who followed Korr as cool as you please and only stopped once in her steps when a caretaker shot past her foot with a shrill screech, what made the Commander jump.

When they stepped through the glowing membrane into the queen’s throne room, she heard him take a dignified breath and grinned knowingly. Deep, melodic singing engulfed them like a warm welcome along with the golden light from the glowing threads and Jenna smiled at the queen who raised her big head and gently waved her long, wispy antennae at them.

    “Sentinel! I am so relieved to see you again! My caretakers have already informed me that you brought along esteemed company.” The queen greeted them in the deep, susurrant baritone of her voice and nearly perfect Vortian as they stood before her and she bent down until her sharp, arm-long mandibles were hovering not even two meters above them. Tork gulped behind Jenna.

    “Do I have to bow? Or… do… something else?” he whispered tensed and before Jenna could answer him the queen chuckled amused.

    “Nothing of the sort, Commander Tork, we meet each other as equals.” She put him off and eyed the Vortian intrigued, her short arms drawing a little closer to her thorax, which she always did when she was trying to hide her excitement. “I was a bit concerned when we didn’t hear anything from you or our new sentinel. I was fearing the worst. But now I am all the happier to finally be able to meet you in person. Are you here to talk about our next steps concerning this war?”

Again Tork didn’t find his words for a second and just stared up to the giant queen in both bafflement and fascination, and this time Jenna had to quietly clear her throat for him to get his bearings back and nod.

    “Forgive me, queen. I… have to admit I’m a bit off my game right now. Please let me give my most sincere thanks to you, first.” His red eyes got earnest and he took a step forwards. “Without you we would’ve already lost this war. You brought Jenna back to us alive and, as she told me, you’re also here to help. No matter what the next few cycles might bring, you’re welcome here and I already           see you as our allies for the risk you’ve taken by coming to Irk.”

The queen chirped pleased and the caretakers on her massive body croaked their approval. Tork continued in the meantime: “Jenna and I have come here to ask you to attend our war council. In order to host you adequately we have decided to hold this council on the _Vengeance_ , our flagship, and connect it to your ship for your convenience. Jenna was prudent enough to bring your… current circumstance to attention. May I congratulate you?” he added a little sheepish and vaguely waved his hand at the big, steaming, gently pulsating egg sack beneath the queen’s abdomen. Jenna had to hold her breath to not burst with laughter. She had never seen the usually so cool Commander with his foot in his mouth like that before. It was almost cringy. But the queen was merciful with the Vortian and graciously inclined her head.

    “Thank you very much, Commander! Indeed, Jenna is very cautious and blessed with a kindness and care without equal, as I was fortunate enough to experience first-hand.” She chuckled quietly and Jenna scratched the back of her head, grinning crookedly at the hint of sarcasm. “I feel honored you’d let me join your council. Shall we leave at once? I would like to take two of my guards and my first captain, Korr, as entourage, if I may.” She added polite and only now did Jenna notice Tschar and another guard, who had been waiting in the background until now, from the corner of her eye. She waved at Tschar and the giant Prerk clacked his pincers happily before snapping back to attention.

Tork still hadn’t noticed the two guards, but nodded after a moment of hesitation. He had probably thought about how Set would react to them right now as well.

    “Of course, queen. And I assure you we will keep the council as short as possible to not unnecessarily prolong your absence here.” He asserted her courteously and flinched despite himself as the queen suddenly eased herself up from her egg sack and stood another two meters taller on her strong jumping legs. On an inaudible, infrasonic command from her the flock of caretakers quickly climbed, jumped and flew off her body, squeaking in distress but obeying their queen’s command to stay behind and care for her eggs. Suddenly Jenna asked herself, startled, how she intended to get through the tunnel that wasn’t even three meters high and, as far as she knew, the only access to the chamber.

As far as she _knew_.

The queen emitted a deep rumbling sound and all of a sudden the chamber’s ceiling began to move: With a thunderous sound the dome-like roof opened up in a spiral and the countless, seemingly chaotically arranged, threads of glowing bulbs were pushed apart to the sides of the chamber until they were hanging from the walls in perfect intervals. Jenna stared up with her mouth gaping and could barely make out the outlines of a giant tunnel in the darkness which the queen would definitely be able to fit through easily.

The Prerk raised herself higher on her legs and spread her huge, cornificated wings, shimmering in every color as she turned them up. Jenna had experienced their deadly force on her own body before and couldn’t keep a shiver from running down her spine at the thought of the queen actually being able to fly with them. The two guards were already winging their way over their heads, quickly vanishing from their view in the big tunnel.

The queen looked down on them and inclined her head invitingly.

    “I would advise you to leave the chamber now. The currents my wings create might be harmful to you. Korr will take you to the command bridge and prepare the docking sequence to your ship. Until then.” With this she tentatively flexed her flight muscles and Jenna ran back to the membrane with Tork on her heels, where Korr was already waiting for them. When the door had closed behind them they heard a loud crack, palpable in their bodies even through the membrane and soon passing over into a loud roar, droning through the entire hallway before it broke off again.

Jenna and Tork exchanged a completely stunned look and then silently followed the Prerk through the unending tunnels, yet they quickly got the impression they were slowly but surely going up and towards the front of the nest.

    “I’m so relieved she didn’t remember that earlier…” Jenna mumbled suppressed and Tork gave her a confused side glance.

    “What? The flying?”

She nodded. “If she’d remembered during our fight I’m not sure I would’ve stood a chance against her.”

   
  


The Prerk command bridge was just as dark as the rest of the nest, only sparsely illuminated by the green light of some alien monitors. When Jenna examined the screens closer, her mouth fell open in fascination; every tiny pixel on the screen was a teensy, bioluminescent microorganism, like the triops you could grow in simple glasses of water. She wouldn’t even have noticed them if they weren’t actually moving around. Some of them stood still, merely pulsing slightly, while others raced over the screen, forming new symbols in the blink of an eye. Unfortunately this room was one of the less… tidy areas of the ship. Actually, it had to be the slimiest one Jenna had ever been in thus far, except maybe for the cell blocks, stuffy and hot and with such a high humidity that it was already condensing in a fine layer on her armor.

    “How the hell did you manage to live here for over ten cycles?” Tork muttered appalled and made a gagging sound in his throat. Jenna shrugged and quickly side-stepped when a big blob of slime almost plashed onto her suit.

    “You kinda get used to it? I was with the queen most of the time anyway and her quarters are completely clean. Besides, the caretakers groomed me regularly. That’s how I lost my hair as well.” She added, sighing, and ran her hand through the short stubbles that were already curling in the room’s humidity.

Korr approached one of the two pilots and repeated the queen’s orders in their language. Jenna eyed the two creatures closer. They were yet another kind of Prerk: more squat than the normal foot soldiers, the hoppers, with broad chitin helmets and short stub-wings. They distantly reminded Jenna of the Prerk’s “technicians”.

There were no windows in the command bridge, instead the two pilots only seemed to orient themselves on one of the bigger monitors. Jenna narrowed her eyes in concentration and looked at the big, glowing construct the small light creatures displayed there right now, but Tork was quicker than her.

    “It’s the _Vengeance_!” he uttered astonished, the fascination in his voice unmistakable. She nodded silently. One of the navigators was talking to Korr while his partner busied himself with one of the sticky consoles, covered in slime.

Now they also started to understand why there was such a high humidity in this room in the first place: the monitors’ surface was made of thin organic membranes, filled with a liquid. Between those membranes the tiny luminescent creatures were able to race around and the humid air kept the membranes from drying out. The spread claws of the pilot gently pushed on multiple points on the soft gel cushion and a real explosion of light followed almost instantaneously, spreading over the “display” in the literal speed of light. In the blink of an eye the image on the screen had drastically changed: now the triops were showing something like a wave band which the tech further adjusted with a few light touches.

Korr waved at Jenna and Tork to step closer and pointed at the oozing console.

    “We now contact ssship. I ssspeak, tell ssship to open lateral hatccch,” he pointed at the side of the glowing image of the _Vengeance_ with one claw, right where the lateral loading hatch was located, “we then connect to nesssst through tunnel. Only takesss moment but ssship mussst ssstay ssstill.”

The Prerk’s communications system was just as out of the ordinary, as it turned out. There were no speakers, nothing through which they would’ve been able to hear what the rebels aboard the _Vengeance_ were sending and for a moment they just stared in confusion at the sudden fireworks of light erupting on the screen, but then one of the Prerk pilots spoke. His voice was an almost identical imitation of the Captain, demanding to know who was hailing them. Korr turned to Tork.

    “They need ssssample of voice to ansssswer.”

A little befuddled Tork stepped closer and gave the Prerk the code of the Resistance and then more code words at which the Captain finally answered a whole lot more relaxed (even though still through the eerie croaking of the Prerk). Korr gave the _Vengeance_ instructions how they had to position the warship and explained what they intended to do, then they left the command center again so Jenna and Tork could fly up to the _Vengeance_ while the Prerk captain headed back to join his queen.

 

 

Not an hour later the air lock of the _Vengeance_ ’s main hangar closed itself behind them and Jenna grounded _Lightwing_ a little further away from the already waiting group. The ground crew had cleared the area around the lateral ramp in the meantime and fairly prepared everything for the war council. Now the hangar was deserted, safe for the gathered commanders, scientists, and a more than impatiently waiting Set who Jenna had immediately spotted among the much smaller aliens as she steered her jet over the group.

Tork jumped out of his jet with a muffled grunt and easily cushioned the fall with his back-bent legs. For a moment Jenna was pondering whether she should keep her armor on but decided against it, there really was no reason to keep it on in here.

    “That… was a _trip_.” Tork admitted and started walking. The red eyes of the Commander were glistening lively and now Jenna had trouble keeping up with his brisk steps without her armor. It was really hard to believe he’d almost died from a heart attack not long ago. “I never thought they had such brilliant means of space travel! No wonder they managed to survive the Irkens despite everything.”

Jenna silently smiled to herself, she was happy that this detour had expanded Tork’s mind.

But before she could think any further she noticed a blurred shadow in front of her and then Set was already on her and took her face in his hands, though, after the heat in the nest she flinched from the cold metal of his hand what immediately caused him to frown.

    “Are you alright?!” he asked quickly and flattened his antennae caught when Tork let out a guffaw.

    “Set, if I didn’t know any better I’d say your species descended from _mother_ _hens_.” Jenna sighed affectionately and placed her hands over his when he already wanted to pull them away again, giving him a wide smile. “I’m fine, just a little sweaty and feeling like I bathed in sludge.” She replied softly and watched his antennae shortly flapping forward before quickly laying back against his head and he almost instantaneously screwed up the area around his mouth, leaning slightly away from her.

    “Oh.” The invader simply did and now pulled his hands away after all, making Tork snort amused.

Then a forceful jerk went through the entire ship, almost swiping them off their feet. Something smashed into the hull around the loading hatch, shaking the massive ship like the punch of a giant. Before they all had caught themselves again, the voice of a tech sounded from the speaker system: “The Prerk have connected their tunnel with the hull. They say that we can now open hatch… dammit, now I even talk like them!” he added, stifling a curse.

The Captain laughed hoarsely and relayed the order to the few members of his crew still in the hangar. The rest of them had been replaced by his and Tork’s guards, supposed to guard the entrances so that no one could gain access to the hangar during the war council. Jenna flinched surprised when she suddenly saw Ink and Ironhead step up to Tork’s side. The two body guards had appeared out of nowhere and she was puzzled, wondering how the big Steelhunter managed to move around so silently.

The loading hatch slowly lowered and for a short moment everyone held their breath anxiously, but the Prerk’s tunnel was hermetically connected to their ship’s hull, probably similar to the gelatinous membranes functioning as air locks, keeping them from getting sucked out into space this way. The glaring light of the hangar illuminated the entrance of the gigantic hallway and Jenna heard the commanders inhale shocked when the enormous, white queen slowly and cautiously hefted her body into the hangar. Her wispy antennae tested the air alertly and she had her first pair of arms almost completely drawn to her thorax, her wings fluttering slightly.

None of the rebels stirred, too paralyzed by the sight of the monstrous creature now rising to her full height and letting the emotionless gaze from her compound eyes travel over them.

Set hissed suppressed next to Jenna and she felt his hand placing itself over her shoulder, ready to pull her behind him at the slightest sign of an attack. But she only sighed in irritation and took a quick step forward to approach the queen. Tork followed her example without hesitation and the Zar’tak stepped past the frozen scientists to greet the Prerk himself.

Since they didn’t want to appear like cowards before their first Commander, the Captain and the rest of the Vortians among them stepped closer as well, while the Ilenians followed after them with some distance, talking to each other in hushed, excited voices, apparently already taking notes about the queen of the Prerk.

    “Welcome aboard the _Vengeance_ , queen. Allow me to introduce you to the members of the Resistance’s council.” Tork greeted her and introduced every single one of the commanders to her. When the Captain actually bowed sweepingly before her the queen of the Prerk buzzed delighted and the light from the ceiling made her black eyes glimmer.

In the meantime Set had stepped up beside Jenna again and was staring at Korr, his eyebrows thoughtfully, but also distinctly combatively, drawn together and when the Prerk captain returned the glare and clacked his mandibles, the Irken recognized him.

    “ _You_?!” he barked furiously without paying attention to the other rebels who immediately turned around towards him, shocked. The queen, too, raised her head in surprise and moved closer to them, what caused her guards to tense warily. Korr hissed quietly to himself and the queen slowly let her long antennae wave down to Set until they almost grazed his head.

Suddenly face to face with the giant Prerk, the snarl died down in his chest and his hand reflexively wrapped around Jenna’s shoulder again but she took another step away from him and towards Korr so that Set was suddenly left alone confronting the queen.

    “So you are the honorable invader that helped my captain to his promotion. Jenna… told me quite a lot about you. It’s a great pleasure to finally meet you in person, free Irken. I feel obliged. The supply of iron you left us was excellent.” The queen hummed friendly as if she hadn’t noticed the bad blood from just now.

Set’s eyes had gotten big at her words and he shot Jenna an insecure glance, as though he was suspecting some trick behind her friendliness.

Korr moved away from the side of his queen and took careful steps towards the invader who towered him by a good bit, and then reached out his open hand, turned downwards, a Prerk gesture of submission and trust.

    “You keep word, invader.” He said solemnly and bowed his head. “Our encounter desssstiny, nothing of all thisss would happened if our pathssss had not crosssssed.” His Vortian was still faltering and hard to understand because of his hissing but Set understood what the Prerk was trying to say and nodded slowly. He was still frowning and one side of his face was slightly twitching, something Jenna had seen him do whenever he was wrestling with his pride.  

    “I… I have to thank you, for bringing Jenna back to me. You’re right, if you hadn’t attacked my… ship back then she would probably be dead. I… am in your debt.” He gave back (teeth-gnashing) and slightly bowed to Korr what made Tschar and the other guard chatter hushed in astonishment. The queen flared her mandibles elated and then turned back to Tork and the commanders now that this was settled, while Jenna just smiled at Set and would have loved to give him a proud thumbs-up but the situation didn’t seem quite appropriate for that.

Tork asked the gathered aliens to join him at a big, oval table that they had brought from the original base for this very purpose and at which Tork had masterfully stood up to Vaka not all that long ago to form his council.

Now the commanders, scientists, Jenna, Set and the Zar’tak all had to huddle together to make room for the queen who sank down at one end of the table and curiously looked down on the holograms, craning her short neck. Tschar and Korr were talking under their breath in Prerk, probably enthralled by the foreign tech the way they pointed at the table.

The first Commander of the Resistance let his keen gaze travel over the faces of his ragtag war council and then nodded with a grim smile.

    “Alright… then let us put an end to this war once and for all.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm really happy with how this chapter turned out (even though I had planned to put a looooot more into it but oh well, that'll have to go into the next one).  
> I'm kind of on a roll right now, so the next chapter might come out next Sunday already! There's gonna be more war-council talk and we're gonna catch up with the questions from the last chapter! I'm actually pretty baffled how I managed to make everything from before come together so nicely!
> 
> Hope you guys enjoy this extra-long chapter!!! ♥♥


	102. Choices - Pt. 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [C U R I O S I T Y Twitter](https://twitter.com/CURIOSITYupdate)

###  **\- 32  Choices -**

  
**Part 3**  
  
  
Nemon was the first to take the floor: “First of all we need to clarify something. Initially we feared that Jenna’s proximity to the _Hive_ might alarm the Irkens of our approach, since she still had the active Scouts in her brain and their impulses would intensify gravely with her dreams, or visions as you call them. That was one of the reasons why we decided back then to put her into cryostasis, hoping we’d be able to shut down the Scouts this way for the duration of our journey to Irk. Yet our latest scans of her brain showed quite plainly that the Scouts were still active even in cryostasis.” He waited for his colleagues to nod in approval before he continued, now turning directly towards the queen of the Prerk, who cocked her giant head to one side to eye the Ilenian curiously.

“Jenna told us that her frequent visions of the _Hive_ only ever started again after she’d left your nest. I’m wondering whether this was just because of the great distance to the _Hive_ or probably your nest itself. If that’s the case we might be able to use it to our advantage.”

The queen rumbled quietly, her long antennae wiggled briefly over their heads, a sign of her affirmation.

    “It is indeed related to our nest, or, more precisely, with me and my abilities. To hide my hive from the Irkens, and before them the patrols of the Galactic Council, I make use of the gift, the visions I gained from drinking the Irken blood, to see if they’re close. Furthermore I use the songs of my ancestors to veil our nest from enemy eyes and scanners, and the gaze of the Eye, or the _Hive_ as it apparently calls itself. The finely tuned frequencies are strong enough to hide us from enemies and prey alike. Moreover it prevents the Paks of our… prisoners to initialize their self-destruct sequence.”

    “So it’s something like a disturbing signal, blocking the Scouts’ signals from both outside and inside… and fooling radars at the same time. That would explain why we only noticed your nest when you were already at our doorstep.” Tork mumbled lost in thoughts and then gave a slow nod to that.

“How big is your song’s range? Would it be strong enough to shield a small team so far until they’d landed on the planet’s surface?” he asked intrigued and Jenna thought she knew what he was getting at.

The Captain seemed to guess that as well but he shook his head.

    “Tork, do you really think we can launch another attack like that on their tower? You gotta admit they’re gonna expect that!” he interposed concerned. To Jenna’s surprise, Set shook his head beside her.

     “You’re right, Captain. Usually they would have to expect another stealth team approaching, but they’re far too proud and conceited to really do. As far as I know them, and I can say I do, they probably think that their counter-attack demoralized us far enough to never try something like that again. I think we should try it. If we can use the Prerk swarm as a distraction…” he fell silent when he heard Korr’s disapproving mandible-clicking, furrowing his brows irately, indignant that he had been interrupted by a soldier of a lower rank. Jenna reacted in time before the situation could go south and gently grabbed his arm.

    “I’m sure the Prerk are going to help us, but I don’t think it’s right to just use them as cannon fodder.” She pointed out, casting an apologetic glance towards Korr and the queen. The big Prerk objected to that with a jerk of her head.

    “Sentinel, we are ready to do anything it takes to destroy this _Hive_. I am willing  to deploy my soldiers according to your needs and plans. Unfortunately my song doesn’t reach far enough to hide you all the way to Irk’s surface but definitely behind the armada’s ranks. So they won’t know you’re coming until you’re safe behind their line of attack. But what I ask in return is that my first captain may accompany your assault team.” She nudged Korr almost gently with her front leg and the big Prerk cooed submissively. “If you really destroy the _Hive,_ then one of my kind will have to be present to witness its demise with his own eyes. Korr proved the most cunning and able one of my captains, I want to offer you his skills as support.”

Her words evoked very different reactions among the attending aliens; Set and the majority of the Vortian commanders were looking more than distrustful but Tork and the Captain inclined their heads in gratitude and approval. The first Commander leant over the table and called up a few entries in the holographic display. They were recordings of the first attack on the Tallest Tower, in all its gruesome details. Jenna could only watch the single entries with wide eyes and her mouth agape, even though she had seen the entire fight in Tork’s memories. Next to her Set tensed sensibly and her hand, still placed on his arm, calmingly palmed over his cool skin until she felt the big muscles beneath relax again.

Tork opened a new entry between all the videos and scan evaluations and began to sketch out a plan of attack. First he entered “small stealth team” and then drew a short lone before pausing again and looking around one. One of the Vortian commanders stood taller on his back-bent legs and pointed at the videos – fortunately – silent witnesses of their previous failure.

    “Commander, even if the Tallest won’t expect another assault of this kind… _where_ are we supposed to attack?! We didn’t find anything In the Tallest Tower, no matter how far we pushed into the depths of this structure with our team, and even Lieutenant Commander Set’s expertise didn’t help us.” His slightly croaking voice was full of his unspoken accusation and Jenna heard the warning hiss building up in the Irken’s chest. When she shot a glance up to him his crimson eyes were narrowed into sinister slits.

But the commander didn’t let that faze him (although he swallowed briefly before turning his eyes on Tork, defiantly). “It’s a fact.”

Tork gave a concurring grunt and then pointedly turned towards his Second in Command.

    “You’re right of course, commander Arkh. Our only lead concerning the _Hive_ ’s whereabouts were the Meekrob’s words. They were convinced that the _Hive_ had to be hiding beneath the oldest building in the capital. But our scans during the mission showed us that we completely searched the Tallest Tower and there was no other hidden cave beneath it where he could be hidden. From Jenna’s visions we know to an extent what the _Hive_ is supposed to look like, and that he most certainly has a physical form. Which means he would need at least a bigger amount of space to be contained in. And nothing we found in the Tower’s subsurface levels seemed big enough for such an entity. So now we’ll have to think of something else.”

For a moment Tork fell silent and intently stared at the holograms, but Jenna noticed that his glare was going right through them.

The other commanders and scientists had started to whisper quietly with each other, so muted that you could barely catch any scraps of their conversations. Jenna examined the holograms as well, or rather the map of Irk’s capital, with the Tallest Tower in its center. The scans Reliat and the few other technicians of the assault team had done of the tower during the attack had been added to the blueprints of streets and buildings SIR had previously scouted out, and the ones Set had pulled from both his own memory and his Pak’s database, mapping out nearly the entire diameter of the city. The Tallest Tower was nearly as deep as it was tall, with widely ramified tunnels and chambers.

    “We can’t just look for him in every building close to the tower haphazardly, we need specific coordinates… clues… something.” Tork murmured tensed. Set gnashed his teeth.

    “And if we sent SIR down to the surface again? His stealth matrix is working flawlessly, we’d just need Trook to recalibrate it so he won’t get recognized by the Irken scanners…” he just proposed, what caused a bigger discussion to erupt, but Jenna wasn’t even listening anymore. She was still staring at the map, while the _Hive_ ’s words from her latest vision were once again echoing inside her mind:

  

   _You know you can’t hide anymore. You know you can’t run from me anymore, human. Give in. You can prevent so much pain and grief with just one decision. My offer still stands: Turn yourself in and I will let the rebels leave._ _I will let your invader leave as well. You have my word. I take no interest in squashing puny insects that will perish either way. It’s you I want. Join me and save your own kind._

She felt over the buckle of her suit. Would it be too risky? Set had found her through the transmitter in her armor two times already… she had been playing with this thought ever since her vision in Set’s jet…

Something jabbed against her consciousness, so strong it felt like someone had virtually flicked a finger against her brain and she involuntarily flinched, caught. As soon as she’d recovered she already saw the green glare out of five eyes from across the table, shocked and round in horror. She returned his gaze stubbornly and frowned.

    _“You wouldn’t dare…”_ Zar hissed inside her mind and the black skin of his shoulders surged in a silent warning. None of the other rebels noticed their voiceless dispute; they were still too busy discussing possible hideouts of the _Hive_.

Jenna couldn’t answer the Zar’tak directly, but she knew he was currently focusing his entire energy on reading even the smallest of her thoughts.

 _I could lead the rebels right to him! Set can locate me over my suit and you can even find me without it, or am I wrong?_ , she thought as clearly as she could and twitched her eyebrows at him; she _would_ dare it. The green eyes narrowed furiously at her, then two of them darted to the side, to something a bit over Jenna’s head and all of a sudden Set was startled, looking down on her with an incredulous snarl. Jenna immediately took a step back and raised her hands defensively as every pair of eyes suddenly settled on her. _That goddamn traitor!_

     “You want _what_?!” the invader yelled outraged, so loud that the other aliens all flinched, causing even the Prerk queen to flare her mandibles in start and her two guards to cower combat-ready.

    “Thanks a bunch, Zar!” Jenna growled towards the telepath and crossed her arms in front of her chest. Tork was glancing warily between the three of them and snapped his fingers impatiently to get their attention.

    “Jenna?” he asked furtive, drumming an expectant rhythm on the edge of the table with hard fingertips. “You want to let us in on your _plan_?” His voice was a barely composed growl. When Jenna made no move to explain the commotion Set hissed again and then nodded towards the Zar’tak.

    “She wants to turn herself in!”

The silence that followed was even worse than she had expected. Especially the terrified glares the rebels considered her with caused her stomach to twist into a hard knot.

    “Just so we can find out where the _Hive_ is!” she blurted out to defend herself. Now Tork was looking at her almost intrigued, what educed another scandalized hiss from Set.

    “What do you mean? How could we find the _Hive_ by allowing you to turn yourself in? I get that the Tallest are pretty arrogant in their own superiority, but I highly doubt they’d forget to check you for trackers or bugs. And don’t expect them to let you keep your armor.” He said skeptically, nodding his chin at the heavy belt around her hip. Set nodded.

    “Exactly. It’s far too dangerous!”

Jenna furrowed her brows at him and shook off his hand that had placed itself on her shoulder.

    “Zar can find me even without my armor! After all he found me in the Prerk nest. Didn’t he?” she protested, hell-bent to defend her cause. “Even if they don’t… take me to the _Hive_ right away, sooner or later I’ll meet him and then the Zar’tak can give you my exact coordinates so you can attack and get me out of there! They’re going to be so focused on me that they won’t pay much attention to another stealth team once the Prerk attack!”

When she looked around and saw only doubt on their faces, her confidence crumbled however.

Tork was the first to speak again: “You really think… they will let us be once they have you?” He sounded tired. Suddenly Jenna felt incredibly stupid, but before she could say something the Captain beat her to it: “The Commander is right, lassie. They’re going to destroy us once they have you. Why should they keep their word? They never did before. If there’s one thing we know about those monsters for sure it’s that they’re mendacious and without honor. Conniving and cruel. They won’t let a chance slide to destroy the only real threat to their empire.” He braced one arm on the table and leant closer so he could look past Tork. His old, harsh features suddenly seemed softer, filled with indulgence. “We know you only want to help. But in all honesty, you’re the only thing keeping them from simply annihilating us along with this entire moon. I don’t think they’ll start bombarding our base with you still somewhere in it. If the _Hive_ really wants you alive that badly he won’t risk killing you by launching a full scale organic sweep, otherwise he probably would’ve already ordered the armada to do so. As long as you stay with us he can’t just eradicate us. He’d have to send troops to this moon to get you before he can.”

Jenna’s frown slowly smoothed out as she realized how right the Captain was. And how close she had been to screw it all. Her heart started pounding frantically inside her chest. She hadn’t thought about it from this perspective!

The Captain saw how much his words had shocked her, how galvanized she was, and he gave her a crooked smile.

    “Aight? It was a good plan, but we have to come up with something else, something maybe not as risky.”

She suddenly realized what else that meant for her…

    “So… so you probably won’t let me fight with you, too.” She muttered, taken aback and Tork screwed his face.

    “The risk is too great, Jenna… The Captain is right. If we want to protect our auxiliary forces and a possible way out of here we have to make sure the Tallest won’t attack our base in a full scale assault. I’m sorry.”

Deeply hurt, Jenna looked at them all, but the commanders were avoiding her glare.

    “Alright… then I guess you won’t need me in this council anyway.” With an angry shove she freed herself from Set’s hand, which somehow had managed to sneak on her shoulder again, and turned away from the war council. She crossed the hangar with wide strides, ignoring the calls ringing after her, and activated her suit once she reached _Lightwing_. Nobody seemed eager to stop her, only the queen tried to beckon her with her melodic voice, but the human ignored her as well as she jumped onto the wing of her fighter and opened the canopy.

The last thing she heard was Tork stopping Set from following her, then she was already inside the darkness of her jet and started the engines. When she steered towards the airlock she noticed that nudge against her mind again and all but screamed in frustration.

    _“Jenna, I trust you won’t do anything rash, even though you are very hurt and disappointed right now. I don’t like doing it, but if you force me to I will have to monitor your thoughts much closer.”_ Zar said quietly inside her head. She felt the sorrow in his disembodied voice and had to fight down the lump in her throat.

    “Whatever.” She spat through the mic of her jet’s exterior speakers and entered the airlock to leave the _Vengeance_.

 

“Tork… I understand that we have to protect Jenna from falling into the Tallest’s hands… and that we can’t allow them to cut off our escape route… but we need her in this fight. We need her _on_ Irk. You know that.” Nemon’s quiet objection sounded numb, void of any emotions. Tearing his eyes away from the disembarking jet the Commander looked his Medical Officer in the eyes and saw the adamant determination in them. Nemon’s four eyes were focused on the map of the city, his brows furrowed harshly. Suddenly he reminded him of the sharpshooter again, the one he had met on a besieged refugee planet way back when.

It had been shortly after the fall of Il, the Ilenian home world. The high ranking medic had commanded a small ragtag team of refugees back then to deter the invading Irken troops while the rest of the fugitives tried to escape. He had witnessed the cold resolve with which Nemon had made one hard decision after the other to fulfil the superior goal; stopping the Irkens-

Nemon had been one of the first rebels Tork had sworn into office under his own command. And one of his oldest and closest friends.

    “I know what you’re doing. You’re still planning to keep a way out for her, a way out of here to at least give her the chance to a possible future, to try again should we fail. Her and the rest of the rebels. But… have you ever thought that, maybe, this might be the final destination for _all_ of us?” Nemon was only whispering now, quiet enough for only Set and the Captain to hear it as well. The other commanders were far too shaken by Jenna’s dramatic exit anyway to pay the lean Ilenian much attention.

    “Of course I do.” Tork hissed back and bared his teeth despite himself. “Every goddamn day, every waking hour! But don’t you dare think I much care for that thought!”

Nemon snorted under his breath.

    “Trust me, I don’t. It was hard enough to see my future die with Elis on that day… to think that all of my students… Reliat, Car… and Jenna…” he broke off shortly and exchanged a glance with Set who looked like he couldn’t believe what the doctor was saying. “But we’re here. We’re probably the only ones that still have a chance to stop the Irkens once and for all. Isn’t it our duty to throw everything we have at them, even if it means for each and every one of us to die in the process? If even the faintest hope exist to beat them this way… then we must use it, Tork. We have to use Jenna’s abilities. It’s no help to anybody if she stays behind with the other rebels and ends up being the only one able to fight. She need us by her side, and we need her powers more than anything else. I’m sorry, I’m rambling like an old fool… but please think about what I said. It doesn’t even sound that impossible, all odds considered.”

With this Nemon straightened himself again and looked down on the holograms, seemingly lost in thoughts. Tork watched him just as thoughtfully and weighed the words of his Medical Officer. As horrible as it appeared at first to sacrifice the Resistance’s entire force…

    “Alright, listen up everyone. This is the new plan.”

 

Jenna grounded _Lightwing_ on the main airfield and took a few seconds to calm down and get her emotions under control again. Angrily she wiped the balls of her hands over her wet eyes and sniffled quietly to destroy every small trace of her upset state. The two giant shadows of the _Vengeance_ and the Prerk nest were still looming over the rebel base like one giant organism and even from down here she could clearly see the big hatch of the airlock she had stormed through not a minute ago. After a few more calm breaths she finally exited her jet and made her way to the halfway buried MedBay. But before she could open the heavy metal doors, someone grabbed her arm.

    “Jenna, what are you doing here!? I thought you were up there with the war council.” Car called out surprised and Jenna turned around, her face already speaking volumes that something wasn’t right, why the Vortian quickly shut up again and gave her a knowing frown. “Trouble, huh?”

Jenna could only nod weakly. She was just too angry being treated like some fragile lucky charm again when she could clearly pose an edge to the outcome of this war.

    “Hey, how about we visit my uncle, hm? I bet he can cheer you up.” Car proposed suddenly and already pulled her along behind her, across the bulldozed square of the rebel base and furher until they had left the flat, dust-covered buildings and the busily running fighters behind them. Jenna didn’t struggle against it, she was glad that Car had immediately realized what must’ve happened and didn’t pick her brains about it.

After a few hundred meters something stood out of the dust, looking so familiar and yet so completely out of place that Jenna stopped dead in her tracks and Car’s fingers slipped from her wrist.

It was Trook’s shop. The very same Jenna had entered once on the camping planet Free Haven, disguised as a Vortian and still so incredibly fascinated by all the alien creatures around her. Now, standing alone and not flanked by other buildings the shop really looked more like the science-fiction version of a giant RV, and indeed, the weird chimneys on its roof were really big thrusters.

An amused sigh slipped Jenna. Trook had even turned on the holographic “Open” sign above the door.

Car shouldered the door open and didn’t even bother with knocking but made do with calling out into the sales area. Immediately a huge pair of safety googles appeared from behind a corner and Trook grinned widely.

    “Ah, hey Car, I-“ That was when he noticed Jenna and he stopped for a moment before he ran towards her, not even taking off his huge welding gloves to wrap his arms tightly around her. She returned the embrace happily and felt better already. When Trook parted from her again, his eyes had a wet shine to them but he just shook his head and laughed in relief.

    “Jenna… good- so good to see you. I already heard you were back and apparently in one piece. I’m sorry I didn’t get to see you sooner but ever since we got here I really had my hands full.” He apologized.

    “It’s okay, Trook, I could’ve visited you sooner as well… well I would have if Set hadn’t decided to turn into a giant asshole again.” She said drily and saw the way he nodded with a grimace.

    “Yeah, I noticed. He was… not an all too pleasant company. We were all worried he might snap completely eventually. Well it’s a relief it didn’t come to that, and now I’m more than relieved you’re finally back. But how did you survive? Or did you just come to poor old Trook to plunder my weapons stash again?” he teased them and Car grinned sheepishly.

    “Oh come on… yeah, we kinda were, but…” she shot Jenna a quizzical glance and she sighed, her shoulders drooping.

    “It’s just… Tork doesn’t want me to fight. I don’t know if I’m supposed to keep this to myself or not, but I don’t really care right now. He said the Tallest would destroy the moon immediately if they’d ever get their hands on me.” She explained angrily and Trook nodded slowly.

    “Well he’s not wrong about that. I heard their transmission too, and it really sounded like you’re the only thing they want in _one_ piece… if you’re truly that vital to… whatever they’re planning, they wouldn’t risk killing you in an organic sweep.”

Car’s eyes widened in start at his words but Jenna just groaned frustrated and threw her hands in the air.

    “That’s the exact same thing he said!” she hissed and slumped against one of the many workbenches.

    “Huh, if the Commander ordered you to, there’s really nothing you can do against it, kid. My brother is three times as cunning as he looks. And even more experienced, especially concerning Irkens. Sorry, there’s really no smart advice I could give ya.”

Jenna started chewing her bottom lip. Then she suddenly remembered that she had planned to visit Trook anyway.

    “Oh, while I’m already here,” she pointed at her belt, “did you change something in my suit perhaps? It feels heavier than before and the armor’s fit seems different as well.” She asked curiously and for the first time since he’d hugged her the old Vortian’s face lit up.

    “So you noticed, eh? Activate it for me.”

Jenna did as she was told and squeezed _Void_ ’s buckle. The black suit shot fluidly out of the containers at the belt and wrapped her body in its protective armor in the blink of an eye. Trook came over to her and opened a hatch on her upper arm plating with a few quick hand grips. A hand long vial appeared beneath it, connected to an injector.

    “Emergency Pakrit. If you get into a pinch and aren’t currently fueled with the stuff – just open up this here hatch and push this button.” He carefully pointed at a small, crimson button located under the vial and Jenna nodded enthusiastic. “The injector’s going to pierce your arm and, well, inject you with the entire vial. Emergencies only! Nemon said you should still be careful with the stuff!”

It took them almost an hour until Jenna had told Trook what had happened to her inside the Prerk nest, and for the tinkerer to explain all the new gadgets and improvements he had made in her absence, but in the end Jenna was beaming at him.

She was just about to let the suit retreat into the belt again, when the door was opened and Ink and Ironhead stepped inside, though the Steelhunter had a bit trouble since his massive shoulders were almost too wide to fit through the door. The solemn face of the silent Vortian spoke volumes even before he opened his mouth to talk:

    “Tork wants to see you.”               

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'M BACK BABES!!
> 
> ugh sorry for the hiatus, those of you who follow the Twitter probably know I had a lot of trouble with a water damage in my kitchen/living room... I'm gonna write more notes tomorrow, I'm tired and have work in the morning q.q


	103. Choices - Pt. 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [C U R I O S I T Y Twitter](https://twitter.com/CURIOSITYupdate)

 

###  **\- 32  Choices -**

  
**Part 4**  


_2 hours later – Moon of Irk – Rebel camp – 65 hours before ultimatum deadline_

 

 Jenna’s brows had furrowed in anger; in a first impulse she had meant to resist returning with the two bodyguards, out of stubbornness and because she was still hurt from getting treated like she was too fragile, but when she had seen Car’s warning glance she had just sighed, resigning, and gave Ink an affirming nod. She knew the two of them would take her back to Tork either with or without her consent and she really hadn’t felt like getting carried through the entire camp flung over Ironhead’s shoulder like a wet sack of sand. So she had followed them peacefully, with her curiosity making itself noted despite herself. What had happened after she stormed out of the _Vengeance_ ’s hangar? What, or rather _who_ , had managed to sway Tork in his decision to talk to her once more or was he simply already done with the war council and hell bent on giving her a good old roasting for behaving like that in front of his commanders?

Car jerked her from her thoughts with a sharp elbow she jabbed into Jenna’s ribs, pointing queryingly at the empty, sawn off metal hull of an ion torpedo the rebels had repurposed into a drinking mug the size of a tankard. The rude distraction allowed the other impressions of her surroundings to force themselves back into Jenna’s consciousness and she had to blink for a moment to get oriented again. The fact that she’d already had one of those pitchers for herself didn’t exactly make it any easier for her. All around her the rebels were partying boisterously; someone had even managed to somehow get music to play over the speakers of the crammed mess hall, and it appeared to her as though the rebels had brought the entire supply of alcohol from their home planet. The majority being questionable moonshine like the stuff Car was waving in front of her face just now.

Jenna thought briefly about skipping this round, simply because it just didn’t feel right to her to get wasted in the midst of a warzone, but then her defiance piped up again, stoked even by her first drink, and she pushed her glass towards Car with a grim nod. Her friend grinned contented and almost flooded the wobbly table when she dumped the green swill all too enthusiastically into Jenna’s tankard.

Before Jenna could thank her, the Vortian already turned away again to continue her conversation with another alien at the other end of the table, both already so tipsy they didn’t notice how Jenna’s face clouded once more and she sipped at her drink lost in thoughts, while reclining back against the corner she was sitting in, careful not to spill her filled glass. She had deliberately retreated onto the rearmost bench in the mess hall where it was darker and quieter than in the middle of the room and she could brood in peace while the rest of the rebels were celebrating.

Tork had given them his official go-ahead, ordered it, really – for one night all rules and (almost) all watches were suspended so everyone could unwind completely before the big attack, to avoid tensions and escalations before the defining fight and to lift the moral in total after the ill-boding message of the Tallest that was still playing on repeat over every single public channel.

Now unchecked again, Jenna tried once more to recall every little detail of her conversation with Tork. Not because she might’ve missed something or because she was trying to look for hidden insinuations the Commander might have dropped, but rather because she wanted to convince herself once more that there really was no other way to go about this.

There wasn’t exactly much she had to remember: Ink and Ironhead had taken her straight to Tork’s private quarters without any detour, a tiny construction site trailer right next to the command central where she had heard the Tallest message for the first time. Tork and Set had already been waiting for her inside, both with similarly withdrawn expressions and she didn’t had to be a Zar’tak to know that the two of them probably had been plotting something in secrecy like they had during the attack on the _Massive_.

Jenna had successfully fought the urge to run over to Set even though she was almost painfully drawn to him after their shared mental connection from earlier. She had _still_ been mad. Tork had declared that she would join the assault now after all, but her initial joy and relief was soon replaced by another wave of frustration, since safe for a short briefing about the general execution of the attack, and that she was supposed to join the small stealth team heading straight for Irk under the protective veil of the Prerk queen, neither Tork nor Set disclosed anything about their further plans. Even after she left Tork’s quarters together with Set and they were alone, she hadn’t managed to get anything more out of the Irken, despite threatening him with everything she could possibly think of. Gradually she was beginning to doubt that they really had planned something in secrecy.

The plan of attack was simple: The Prerk and a part of the rebel fleet would start an assault on the capital about 24 Ti before the end of the ultimatum, exactly when Set had calculated the next relief of the guards on the surface and within the armada ought to happen, with the help of SIR’s recon observations.

That way they would have to face admittedly almost twice as many Irkens, but in the overall confusion they hoped the soldiers would get in each other’s way thus slowing the armada’s response time, enabling the massive fleet of the Prerk to drive a wedge into the blockade of ships and cause even more chaos among the Irken fighters while the more hard-hitting jets of the rebels would take out the anti-matter mortars on the planet’s surface to create a safe corridor for the small stealth-team.

Disguised by the queen’s song, who had offered to fly her nest dangerously close to the battle in order to A: increase the range of her song and B: erect a sort of shield with the sheer size of their nest, Tork’s team would take a tiny transporter through the firefight and, at best, land a few paces outside the capital. The moment they were safely on the surface, Tork would signal the _Vengeance_ to enter the fight. He had abandoned the idea of keeping her as a last chance to escape should the battle take a turn for the worse. Instead she was supposed to use her incredible fire power to rain hell on the capital city and, more importantly, the Tallest Tower itself. If everything went well the rebel fleet would have dispersed the Irken armada far enough to this crucial point in time that the heavy warship shouldn’t have any bigger trouble to crack the giant structure open and scatter the local ground forces enough for Tork and his team to infiltrate the tower without too much of a fight.

Then the stealth team’s objective was to fight their way to the Tallest and take them hostage in order to get the _Hive_ ’s location out of them and to prevent them from launchin the feared full scale organic sweep on the moon's surface, with Jenna and Set being the most vital factors in this mission. Yet this very part was still left with a residual risk. Nobody could say with certainty that the Tallest would yield this information even in the face of their own death. And this remaining risk, this small uncertainty was what made Jenna doubt the outcome of this fight.

She knew the Tallest well enough to know that they’d put the interests and success of the Empire – and thus the _Hive_ – above their own, no matter how big the threat for their own life, or a possible gain for themselves, might be. Which was why they had immediately degraded Ria to a simple food drone, neutralizing the threat she posed for the _Hive_ ’s total control the second she only brought forth her groundbreaking research about getting rid of the Codes. Which was why they had tried absolutely everything to get rid of Zim, even though he really was a more annoying than really dangerous nuisance. And which was also why they had tried to destroy _her_ straightaway once they realized that Set was changing because of her.

Jenna was certain that the Tallest would rather die than betray the _Hive_. And because of that they would fail.

    “Hey, wha’s wrong with you?”, Car’s slurred question jerked Jenna from her thoughts again and she raised her eyes from her pitcher in start, worried her expression might have betrayed her inner conflict. She quickly shook her head and tried a smile before wiping her face with one hand and feigning a yawn.

    “Nothin’, just getting sleepy.” She hummed back and hastily took another big gulp from her glass to hide her face behind it. When she lowered the tankard again Car was looking at her with a frown, her vermilion eyes piercing into her. Jenna’s heart leapt into her throat, she noticed the cold sweat forming on her palms and she was sure the Vortian would see right through her any second now but then her features relaxed again and she gave a croaking laugh.

   “Aww man, you’re such a wimp! Earth really must’ve been boring if this is enough to tire you out.” She smirked, followed by a forceful hiccup that made her spill her drink over Jenna’s outstretched leg on the bench. She smiled weakly and didn’t even bother trying to wipe the alcohol from her overall, it would dry quicker anyway.

    “Hey, did you already forget that I, like, saved your dad’s life? ‘s not even seven hours ago. The Pakrit wasted me enough on its own.”

    “U-huh,” Car did with a nasty grin, “an’ I bet the thorough _pounding_ you got after that had nothin’ to do with it, suuuure.”

Jenna playfully kicked at the Vortian who dodged lickety-split despite her drunk state, spilling more of her drink over her leg on purpose. They both laughed at that and this time Jenna’s laugh was heartfelt for once. But she had to be careful that her face wouldn’t reveal her true emotions. For example the tension in her entire body that already made the nape of her neck ache or the still anxious pounding of her heart whenever her thoughts would run off track.

Suddenly, as if he had just read them, a black shadow appeared right next to her, seemed to virtually pour out of the wall she was resting against, and green shining eyes darted down to her face alertly.

Jenna was startled badly and flinched hard on the bench. The knee she had drawn to her chest bumped against the short table across from her and the jolt made the abandoned glasses jump. Luckily she was already alone at the table and none of the other rebels noticed the more than creepy entrance of the telepath, except Car.

    “Zar, what the hell!” Jenna gasped and reflexively reached down for her belt. Even Car had screamed out in shock but immediately started giggling and boxed the Zar’tak on one of his arms.

    “Nice one, _Zaza_!” she snorted out, raising her glass to him. For a short, merciful moment the five green eyes swayed towards the drunk Vortian and Zar briefly furrowed his brows in silent reproach, though Jenna couldn’t exactly tell whether he was disapproving the general abuse of alcoholic beverages or Car calling him by her own nickname for him again. One or the other, it gave Jenna the second she needed to calm down again and take another big slug of her own drink as a diversion before she felt his eerie glare lingering on her once more.

    _“I don’t know if I should approve of this… bout. The overall mood of the rebels has improved greatly… but at the same time I can’t seem to read their thoughts anymore… how strange.”_ He noted, not exactly without interest and the lower pair of his eyes narrowed slightly when he looked first at Car and then Jenna. She took another, pointedly big gulp from her tankard and stifled a cough when the strong booze set her throat ablaze.

    “Can you… really not read them or just… blurred?” she wanted to know, trying to keep her voice as neutral as possible, what wasn’t exactly hard since she was by now already slurring and a pleasant dizziness had spread inside her head. She only felt distantly, like through cotton, how something tried to poke against her consciousness.

    _“It is… really weird. If I try for any longer to connect to your mind, I feel dizzy.”_ Zar said after a moment and shuddered slightly, the outstretched feelers of his own mind quickly retracting. Grinning, Jenna raised her glass and swayed it around in front of him.

    “Wanna give it a try? I could imagine your abilities would get a humor-, humu-… it could get _funny_.” She sputtered and had to giggle when Zar merely narrowed his eyes at her and vehemently shook his head what had both women laughing all the harder.

    _“You should be careful with that.”_ He lectured them and only got annoyed groaning in return. _“If I catch you overdoing it I will send Dr. Nemon and Set to get you.”_

Jenna and Car uttered such an outraged noise that the black telepath flinched hard in surprise. He could only watch with big, round eyes as Car grabbed Jenna by the wrist, pulling her off the bench with one hand and dragging her along behind her, away from him. Then she suddenly stopped dead in her tracks and looked at something at the other end of the mess hall. Out of the blue Car started laughing, turned back towards the Zar’tak and waved him closer hectically. A little wary the telepath stalked closer and looked into the direction the Vortian was pointing.

    “Yeah, good luck with _that_ , _Zaza_ , I do believe the good doctor is out of commission himself.”

Jenna peeked around Car’s shoulder as well and had to suppress a loud snort: Nemon was standing at one of the improvised tables, a huge pitcher in one hand, the other wildly gesticulating in front of the face of an Ilenian scientist who appeared more than a little tipsy herself, hanging on his every word with her upper pair of eyes closed almost all the way and her chin resting heavily in one hand while she took little sips of her own drink now and then, slow-nodding in approval.

Behind them Zar hissed more than aghast while Jenna and Car were barely able to stand, shaken by their laughter.

    _“Is everyone on this moon drinking themselves to oblivion?!”_ he wanted to know scandalized and took another look around the crowded mess hall, filled to the brim with drunk aliens. Jenna shrugged.

    “Tork probably not, and I seriously doubt that Set will ever touch anything that could knock out his Pak again after his experience with the drug I mixed under his drink.” She added and grinned guiltily when she heard Car chuckle. With a quick side glance to Zar she made sure that he was now barely paying any attention to her, too shocked by the general binge. Still, if it was true what he had said she would need even more alcohol. “Hey Car… do you like drinking games?”

 

 

After another good hour Jenna was so hammered that she had trouble walking in a straight line but she was thankfully still clear enough to have at least some awareness of her surroundings. Zar had vanished after realizing that Car and she had no intention whatsoever to control themselves in any way and she was desperately hoping that he had also abandoned the thought of trying to observe her for the rest of the night as well. It was the dead of night on the moon, more and more rebels had joined the celebrating aliens and so the rest of the camp was almost deserted.

With the excuse that she had to go to bed Jenna had left the mess hall and was stumbling among the flat buildings towards the flight field. She had to hold onto the wall more than once and pressed a hand against her mouth when another wave of nausea washed over her. Groaning she leaned her forehead against the cool metal. She had no idea if she would make it in this state but her resolve was just as strong as before.

Again she looked back over her shoulder and scanned her environment. She didn’t really feel like someone was following her but she was still wary of Zar and Set. More so because she hadn’t seen the latter all night and now she was twice as wary. At least she hoped she was despite the alcohol already paralyzing most of her brain. One way or another she had already come too far to call it all off now. There wouldn’t be another chance like this again.

She looked ahead again and could make out _Lightwing_ in the dark which she had parked at the very edge of the flight field for this purpose. Despite the darkness and the remote location she ran the last few meters crouched, stumbling over her own feet multiple times and almost ended up falling over the cable providing her jet with energy. Breath ragged, and with her head swimming she propped herself against her jet and looked around one more time, peering hard into the ink like blackness, but couldn’t see anyone else. As fast as she could she climbed onto the wing of her jet and pressed into the shadow of the canopy. Only then did she feel for the buckle of her belt and activated _Void_ , the sound of the activating suit way too loud in the deserted silence of the air field.

Jenna needed two attempts to open the hatch on her upper arm and uncover the vial of Pakrit beneath it. Her finger hovered hesitating over the red button. Would the Zar’tak notice it if she used the Pakrit? Would she even be able to control its power in this state? Insecure she shot a glance up to where the curve of the planet was visible. But there was no other way to contact him, unless she were to fall asleep right here and there was no way she would take a risk like that!

Determined Jenna shook her head and gritted her teeth. She had to.

The needle of the injector pierced her arm deeply and immediately the shock of the Pakrit threw her against the hull of her fighter. Pure energy swept the dizzy haze from her brain, the numbness from her limbs and replaced it with a tingling sensation of power. Almost instantaneously Jenna focused her consciousness on the surface of Irk, projecting her mind farther and farther through the empty space until she met that overwhelming, crushing, red and black presence again and immediately retreated a bit to not get caught in its pull. But this tiny advance was enough, something forced its way into her head and painfully jabbed against the borders of her mind she had drawn around her consciousness. A sharp flood of curiosity flooded her brain though it wasn’t her own but that of the creature trying to enter it. When he realized that he wouldn’t be able to tear her walls down the _Hive_ retreated and waited, furtive, what would happen next.

 

_So you’ve made your decision._

 

The sentence came without surprise, but rather a calm assessment, as if the _Hive_ had known from the start that Jenna would give in despite her initial resistance.

    _“Yes, but I won’t come to surrender. I will try to destroy you.”_ She retorted calmly over the mental contact, her fear gone. There was no need to hide her motives. A hollow laughter boomed inside her head.

 

    _You can’t destroy me human. You will not destroy me._

Again it was this unswerving composure and assurance he radiated that fueled Jenna’s anger. As though he had felt her irk the _Hive_ chuckled inside her mind.

 

_You really mean to challenge me? And then what will keep me from killing your rebel friends? My terms were clear: Surrender and I will let them go. My word still stands, but only as long as you keep your side of the bargain._

Jenna chewed on her bottom lip, her thoughts racing. She was losing more and more ground in this conversation.

The _Hive_ ’s presence grew again and he tried another attack on her mind, and this time she felt a stinging pain in her head when the Scouts inside her brain reacted to his call. Without any hesitation she jerked the gun she had lifted off a drunken guard from her belt and held it against her temple. Surprisingly enough the _Hive_ paused immediately and withdrew.

    _“Yeah, that’s right. If you or the Tallest try any fucking tricks on me, if I notice you sending the armada to attack as soon as I’m on Irk - and trust me, I will – I’m going to kill myself! You try and take this gun from me? I’ll let the veins in my brain burst! Every tiny attempt to somehow manipulate me before the rebels have escaped will mean my death! And you don’t wanna risk that, right?”_ Her heartbeat was thundering in her own ears, the alcohol was still in her blood and impairing her control over the Pakrit but she felt that the _Hive_ was _thinking_! When he spoke again she all but exhaled in relief.

 

    _Alright. You have my word. You may keep the weapon and your armor until the rebels are all safe. Come. I’ve waited long enough._

Jenna nodded, but she kept the pistol at her head.

    _“Tell me where you are.”_ She shivered when the _Hive_ laughed out loud inside her head.

 

    _Do you really think I will just reveal my hideout like that? You are more naïve than I thought, human. No. The Tallest will take you to me once you arrived at the Tower, and even then will my location remain a secret, I will make sure of that. So come. I promise, nothing will happen to you._

Again, she nodded. So this was it. At least she would save Set and the others this way. She retracted her consciousness meticulously from the _Hive’_ s and shut down her Pakrit consumption until she was sure it would last all the way to the Tower, then she fastened the pistol at the clasp on her back and began opening the canopy. Once everyone was safe she would use the rest of the Pakrit to destroy the Tallest. With their Pakrit she would fight her way to the _Hive_ and blow herself up with-

A strong hand grabbed her arm and pulled her away from the open cockpit, faster than she could even realize what was happening, only that she was suddenly falling! Before she had time to scream Jenna already landed hard on the bulldozed field and barely got out a thin wheeze when the air got knocked out of her lungs. With tears in her eyes Jenna looked up to the shadowy figure above her and tried frantically to get to the pistol at her back but her attacker already jumped down from _Lightwing_ ’s wing and pinned her arm to the ground with a sharp, horned hoof, so that the blood was staunching in her hand and she hissed at the pain. Along with the pain and her rage the Pakrit raced back into her muscles and she kicked her opponent with both feet, catapulting him against the hull of her jet and watching his frame slacken from the impact, a choked sound of pain slipping him. In a wink Jenna was back on her feet and lunged at her attacker, the flaming sheen of her eyes illuminating a Vortian as her hand wrapped around his scrawny neck and she yanked her fist back to beat him unconscious.

Almost immediately she let up on her victim and recoiled appalled. Jak coughed croaking and rubbed his skull punch-drunk while he tried to sit up. When he opened his eyes again there was such a fiery determination in them that Jenna raised her hands defensively and took a step back.

    “Jak?! What- what the hell…” she gasped and tried to fight down the agitated whirl of instincts and self-preservation drives the Pakrit had activated in her. It would have been easy to knock the emaciated Vortian unconscious and escape, but she couldn’t. The accusing glare with which he stared her down made her resolve crumble. That was _Jak_ , she couldn’t hurt him, she couldn’t!

    “Coulda ask yer the same darn thing, fuckin’ shit!” the Vortian spat and bopped up completely. “Wha’s that s’pposed to be once it’s done, huh?! Yer just gonna scram? Leavin’ us to die?! An’ to think I saved yer darn life!” His rage and disappointment affected her more than the actual punch into her stomach, which she didn’t really feel to begin with.

Jenna didn’t fight back, still too shocked that he was actually attacking her, only when Jak tried to wrestle her down she shook the paralysis off and grabbed his bony fists. Her eyes were wide opened and she felt hot tears pricking at their corners. Jak growled and hissed as he tried to free himself, even going so far as to bury his teeth in her armored glove.

   “I… I wasn’t going to run, I… wanted to turn myself in.” Jenna stammered quietly and that stopped the Vortian altogether. The yellow eyes burned stunned into hers and he recoiled in shock until she let his hands go.

    “What were ya…? Turn yaself… _why_ dammit?!”

Jenna shrugged both angry and helpless and pointed at the shadows of the buildings behind them.

    “Because I can’t let you all die because of me! The _Hive_ only wants me, I have his word! If- if you can all get to safety I will be able to destroy him without having to worry about you getting hurt! Don’t you understand?! I want to save you!” she was screaming now and clenched her fists in powerless anger and despair.

 Jak was still staring at her thunderstruck, then his creased brow furrowed again.

    “So ya want us to run away, eh? Like fuckin’ cowards, ‘s that it?!” he looked like he was already about to lunge at her again. Jenna groaned exasperated and pulled on her short hair.

    “God- _no_ , dammit! Don’t you _get_ it we’re sitting ducks in a fucking trap! I’m just trying to get you all a way out of here! I’m not as important for this fight as you all think! I can’t be everywhere at once! But I can get you out of here! I- augh, _fuck_ , this is all so fucked up!” Jenna turned around and noticed two shadows running at them from farther away. Judging by their frames and the size difference it had to be Zar and Set. Great.

She dropped her battle-ready stance and literally felt the Pakrit burning itself out unused. But there really wasn’t anything more she could’ve done now. Jak gently touched her hand.

    “We’ve been runnin’ long enough, kid, we’re done hidin’. If we go now we’ll never stop ‘em an’ then we might as well just kill ourselves an’ save those fuckers the trouble. D’you think that’s what Ria wouldave wanted?” When he mentioned Ria, Jenna flinched and bit her lower lip hard enough to draw bitter blood. Jak patted her shoulder. “Yer’ve tried so many times to show the rebels they can count on ya, when ya saved yer invader to show ‘em they’re wrong, when yer destroyed that station all by yerself and when ya let ‘em freeze ya. We trust ya, Jena. But now yer gotta trust us for once. We know what we’re in for, all o’ us. Else we wouldn’t be here. Aw dangit I’m too drunk mahself to spit out anythin’ smarter than the inside of mah guts. We fight together. We die together if we have to. But ain’t nobody getting’ left behind.”

Jenna slumped even more and allowed the old Vortian to take her into his arms and softly palm over her back, shaken by silent sobs. When Set and the Zar’tak finally reached them she had at least calmed down enough to be able to breathe again without crying.  

The giant Irken came to a skittering halt before them, his heavy boots raising clouds of moon dust, and placed a big hand on her shoulder. Jak made a small step to the side but stayed close to Jenna, ready to shield her from the invader’s wrath. Though it turned out there was no need for that:

   “Jenna! Are you alright? Dammit, I should’ve known!” With that Set pulled her closer and buried his metal hand in her short hair, cupping the back of her head as carefully as he managed to despite his own wrought-up state. Jenna pulled herself up on his arms until she could drape her own over his shoulders and he wrapped his free arm around her middle to hug her to his chest. She felt Zar’s contact against her mind and braced for his rant, but instead of aggravation he sent her only worry and relief.

    _“I didn’t even sense her take the Pakrit through the alcohol… that was… very dangerous.”_

“I’m sorry… I just wanted to…”

Set interrupted her with a fleeting kiss and then quickly placed his hand over her mouth as he parted from her lips. His crimson eyes were flashing upset.

    “I know exactly what you were just about to do! But I never thought you really had that little trust in us to go through with it! Don’t think I will leave you out of sight for one second again! I thought after the war council you could use some time alone but apparently you’ll only get bad ideas being on your own.”

Jenna averted her gaze shamefaced from his glare and stared stubbornly into the darkness. Until she suddenly felt cool lips nuzzling against the skin of her neck and Set growled into her ear:

    “Trust me. Please. We’re gonna make it, I promise.”

Although his mere closeness to her was enough to sent shivers down her spine she leaned back as far as his iron grip would allow her and narrowed her eyes at him.

    “How am I supposed to trust you if you don’t tell me what you’re _really_ up to?!” she demanded to know and groaned annoyed when Set only shook his head.

    “You’ll just have to trust me.” He sounded so pleading that she eventually nodded, silent. “Thank you.” Set breathed and pulled her closer again. “After all you’re not the only one around here with special abilities. And now you will get some rest.”

Before she could utter any kind of protest he had thrown her over his shoulder and walked singlemindedly towards his own jet, standing a few dozen meters away from her own. Behind them Jak waved at her once more and then trudged back to the celebrating rebels. The Zar’tak shot Jenna another intense glare before he simply dispersed into smoke and was gone without a trace.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That was a close one, eh? Jenna almost fucked it up... almost...
> 
> anyways, I'm back guys, a little later than I promised, sorry for that ;; I tried to figure out why I couldn't get back into writing, I guess it's mostly because I don't want this story to be over ^^; but I have to finish it. I have so much more I wanna do, writing-wise, and that keeps me going, just like your nice comments and that you stick with me despite all the delays happening lately...
> 
> I'll have the next chapter done next Sunday, promise! Love you guys, thank you so much again ♥♥♥


	104. Attack

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [C U R I O S I T Y Twitter](https://twitter.com/CURIOSITYupdate)

###  **-  33 Attack –  
**

****

_24 hours later – 136 days and 21 hours since abduction – 40 hours before ultimatum deadline -_ Vengeance

It had taken quite a while to make sure she would fall asleep this time, but now, as he was finally counting her calm, even breaths, Set relaxed a little more and heavily rested on his mechanical elbow, still completely winded himself. Beads of sweat were lining his forehead and covering his bare shoulders, both from the heat in the tiny room and his hell-bent attempt(s) to get Jenna far enough to the edge of pure physical exhaustion that she, almost literally, eventually just lost consciousness at some point. Not that he was complaining, he felt extremely good, satisfied and also contented in the fact that he was able to make her feel so good as well.

Initially Jenna had baulked a little at his determined approach, as always when she feared someone might be able to hear their love-making, yet his sheer hardheadedness (also quite literally) had paid off once again, and somewhere in between his hands and mouth she simply hadn’t been able to control what sounds she was making anymore and in which volume. _Heh_.

But the smug grin already vanished from his face again and he furrowed his brows unwittingly in the dimness of their cramped cabin as he considered the tiny frame in front of him. In the short time since Jenna had tried to hand herself over to the _Hive_ , her nightmares – or _visions_ – had only worsened, both in frequency as well as their intensity. They had gotten so terrible that Jenna hadn’t slept a wink the night before and even started screaming in her sleep, her skin drenched in cold sweat and her body shivering from head to toe, solely interrupted by seconds that seemed like hours to him in which she tensed up so hard he could virtually see how the muscles in her arms and legs cramped up. And each time she’d wake from one of those nightmares she was too horrified to even cry, her eyes round, frightened orbs in the darkness, racing across the room, looking for an invisible threat before she would sink back again, trying desperately to sleep until she was too scared to even close her eyes again.

No matter what he tried, she wouldn’t tell him what she had seen, what horrors the _Hive_ was forcing her to witness, but Set could very well imagine it. The way she kept clutching his body in between her restless moments of sleep, touching him like she had to convince herself that he was real and alive, only showed him more and more plainly just how bad her nightmares had gotten.

And then she had stopped waking from them.

Set’s inner clock was marking the middle of their sleep cycle, so barely a few Ti after he had carried her to his jet and flown up to the _Vengeance_ so they could occupy one of vacant cabins in a quieter wing, when Jenna had jerked him from his light sleep again, thrashing and kicking, her face a distorted mask of pain and fear. The thin top she wore was completely soaked with her sweat, the fine crust of already dried salt dissolved again. He had feared she might hurt herself so he’d grabbed her arms to pin her down, calling her name to wake her up. But Jenna only froze upon his touch, her mouth standing open and yet her ragged breath had stopped altogether. The next seconds had been one of the worst moments in his life. For a horrible instant he felt completely terrified, his mind already set on trying to wake her with a shock from his Pak, when a static discharge shook the small room and Jenna’s body had gotten engulfed in a green shine that only lasted for the blink of an eye. Before Set had realized that it only could’ve been the Zar’tak intervening, she had taken a shaking breath, waking with a start beneath his hands.

Yet this had only been the start. Multiple times did Set feel the sensation of static, emitting from Jenna and causing her to shoot up straight as a stick on the narrow bed, her voice already hoarse from screaming and trying to catch her breath so frantically after each seizure. But nothing, absolutely nothing he did to calm her worked and Jenna hadn’t gotten a single second of peace in more than 24 Ti.

Understandably enough, she had been unbelievably exhausted during the stealth-team’s training session, too tired out to merely hold the long rifle Tork had agreed to let her carry for more than a few seconds. But most of all she had been so nervous and tensed up she startled at every sudden noise, or even wheeled around towards it, her eyes, circled by deep, dark creases, opened so widely you could see more blood-shot white than green. When Tork approached her about her state Jenna had flinched guilt-ridden and mumbled some random apology, yet cautious to avoid talking to anybody about what the _Hive_ had shown her.

Of course he and the Zar’tak had reported to Tork about what had happened that night and Jenna knew it as well. Weirdly enough Tork hadn’t been angry, he didn’t even express any sign of disappointment at Jenna’s rash decision. On the contrary, he had praised Jenna’s willingness to sacrifice herself for the cause, though also reminded her patiently yet sternly that she had sworn an oath to him and she was still under his command. It was almost as if the Vortian knew exactly what was going on inside her head and that she now needed reassurance more than the rebuke.  
  


Set carefully sank onto his side, head coming down to rest on the cool titanium steel of his metal forearm, and stretched his antennae extensively with a contented chirp. His right hand of flesh and blood twitched eagerly in front of his chest but he fought down the urge to reach out and pull Jenna possessively towards him – he didn’t want to wake her under any circumstances. His human companion finally looked at peace for the first time in forever, if you left out the rings under her eyes and the sickly paleness that the dim, red emergency light above the door was now covering up.

Following his train of thought he looked up one of the shots he’d taken of her during her abduction and that was still saved in his Pak’s memory drive. Distraught he closed the inner interface of his Pak again, cast her a disbelieving, scrutinizing glance and then opened the image once more; if he thought her change since the cryostasis had been extreme it was nothing compared to the moment he had first seen her: The formerly even tan of her skin had been replaced by a grayish, pale hue, she had lost a great amount of weight and where her body had once been softly curved and squishy it was now covered in lean, wiry muscles, which was also due to her use of his Pakrit. But, to him, the worst was still the loss of her long, thick hair. Set felt like he had lost a part of her with them, so much did it hurt him to see her like this.

His frown grew into a fully-fledged baring of his teeth and he suppressed the growl rising in his chest just in time before it could escape him in an outraged snarl.

He would restore it all once the Tallest were dead. Once all of this was over, the _Hive_ destroyed, the armada and the Empire stomped into the ground, by his own boots preferably, he would use everything in his power to help Jenna become the one she had been before he’d let her die on the _Massive_. Dammit, if he had to, he would take her all the way back to Earth to recover! Humans were nothing like the Vortians, the Ilenians or even the Irkens! Their kind had not adapted to the strains of space, or foreign planets with different atmospheres, evolutionary or genetically yet. Their bodies were simply not as adjustable as those of the races with extensive space travel.

For a moment of shock the invader wondered whether he had done this to Jenna, his, _his_ loved Jenna, himself by taking her with him all the way from her home planet. He quickly shook his head, tough. If she had seriously gotten sick from her stay in space and the different planets, Nemon would have already noticed it.

    “Set?”

He flinched, caught, before looking down on her guiltily, grimacing contrite. Her eyes were big and almost completely black in the dim light as she returned his gaze from beneath half raised, heavy lids. The onset of a confused smile played around the corners of her lips and he felt weak in the pit of his squeedlyspooch. Nothing was as disarming as her smile… her _everything_ , really, especially when she had just woken up like right now.

    “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you up, Jenna.” The Irken hummed back quietly and now did wrap his arm around her to pull her close to him and kiss her deeply. Jenna gave a soft, surprised noise when their lips touched and then snuggled up so close to him, entangling her leg with his and placing a warm hand on his bare chest, that Set felt his desire flaring up hot again. Yet he ignored it bravely and contented himself with taking her in his arms until she was resting comfortably against his chest, the crown of her head right beneath his chin, so close her short hair was tickling his neck.

    “Don’t worry. You didn’t wake me up… I think. But-“, a deep yawn interrupted her drowsy mumbling. “But you gotta sleep too, babe. How embarrassing… would it be if we _both_ fell asleep on the battle-“, the rest of her sentence petered out as her eyes closed again and her body rested heavily against his arm. Set smiled quietly to himself. Apparently the apprehended changes were mostly superficial after all.

He opened his Pak once he had assured that she was fast asleep again and pulled out the small transponder on its spider leg, contacting his trusty SIR unit.

    “SIR? Make sure that nobody wakes us in the morning, not even Tork. Jenna needs a few extra hours of sleep.” He ordered under his breath and picked up the quiet, snappy bleep of his robot; SIR had understood. Then he sank back completely, placing a gentle kiss on Jenna’s forehead and slowly drifted off into a deep slumber himself.

 

   
  


  _8 hours later – 32 hours before ultimatum deadline_

When Jenna opened her eyes, she was alone.

Startled she immediately sat upright on the hard mattress and looked around hectically. She had been quick to learn these last 24 hours that it was not a good sign when she suddenly woke up and found herself all alone. Tensing up apprehensively, she braced herself for the crushing weight of the presence that would overwhelm her any second now and squeeze out her consciousness like a giant fist, but the _Hive_ didn’t come. Confused, Jenna waited a few seconds longer and now strained her ears to listen into the silence as well until she heard the high pitched background noise of her own body. Either the synthetic monster was playing with her mind again, or…

Slowly she started to realize that she was indeed _awake_ and not trapped in one of his illusions again like before. And as if to confirm her assumption, she felt a gentle nudge against her consciousness at which she involuntarily unbent even more, finally heaving a sigh of relief while rubbing her face with both her hands to stop them from shaking.

    _“How are you feeling?”_ Zar sounded incredibly calm and relaxed, apparently he didn’t had to intervene the entire night to pull her out of the _Hive_ ’s mental claws yet again. When Jenna tried to recall what she could have possibly done to finally evade him she suddenly turned beet-red. Oh, yeah… _that_. And some _more_ of that, too.

Quickly she got up, grabbing her rumpled overall from the floor and reaching into one of the pockets to fish her Chronometer out of it. A shocked gasp left her when she saw the Vortian numerals on the display and had to read them once more, to make sure she had read them correctly. She had slept for eight hours?! But that meant she only had eight more hours before the attack would commence.

Now Jenna wasn’t so sure whether she should thank Set or strangle him! Yesterday she had barely been able to get any training done for herself or with their team, the many secret codes and commands were still more confusing to her than anything else and her aim with the big rifle Tork had given her, was still beneath-

With the sound of a medium-sized gas grenade, the Zar’tak suddenly materialized right next to her and Jenna yelled out in start. Out of reflex she pulled the overall up to cover her naked body but when she really understood who was standing before her she dropped her hands again and sank back feebly on the narrow bed while a feeling of worry engulfed her alarmed brain.

    “Hey, Zar…” she greeted him faintly, her heart still pounding frantically in her chest, urging her to escape as long as the adrenaline was still coursing through her.

    _“Forgive me… but you didn’t answer, I already assumed…”_ His unveiled concern was touching, and the last bit necessary to make the already friable walls of her pretense composure come down completely around her; Jenna buried her face in the stiff fabric of her overall and uttered a choked sob, then another and when she felt heavy, rough paws curling around her shoulders she couldn’t control herself anymore.

The Zar’tak briefly had to re-balance his weight on the balls of his feet as she threw herself against him and slipped down on the floor between his knees, her arms tightly wrapped around his torso, right above his second pair of arms. He quickly checked the perimeter around the cabin with his inner eye, but the invader was nowhere to be seen. As much as the Irken had come to respect and tolerate him it didn’t exactly seem wise to him to get caught in such a position with such a… denuded Jenna.

She shook violently until he wrapped his long arms around her, stroking the tousled crown of her head with one paw. He had stopped counting how many times he'd had to wake her by force the previous night. The _Hive_ ’s presence had been so strong inside her head he had barely been able to make out her consciousness beneath all that raw energy, the Scouts in her brain suddenly so active they had virtually been glowing. But up to now she hadn’t talked about her nightmares to anyone, not even Set, and he felt, without having to enter her mind, that the things she had seen were consuming her from the inside.

    _“I know what you’ve seen, what he threatened you with …”_ he started cautiously and hissed calmingly when she immediately tensed up in his embrace at the sole mention. _“And I know how much it tortures you. But you have to talk about it, so your mind can heal. I can very well understand why you wouldn’t want to talk about your visions with Set or your friends, after everything he threatened to do to them, so talk to me about it. After all, I have already seen what he would do to me.”_ He waited patiently for her to catch herself a little, feeling the urge inside her thoughts to confide in somebody, and eventually her uncontrolled sobs ebbed away.

Jenna wiped over her eyes. Her voice was just a hoarse whisper when she finally spoke: “He… he is _mad_ with rage, Zar. The _Hive_ was already sure he had me when I agreed to turn myself in… and Jak cheated him out of his easy victory.” She faltered for a second and he saw the frown creasing her brow as she pondered. “He… he’s quickly lost his patience with me, I think. The last nightmares were so horrible, so full of… _hate_ …”

Jenna raised her head and looked the Zar’tak dead in the eyes, letting their green shine mesmerize her while her brain connected the last pieces of the puzzle. “Zar, I don’t think a synthetic lifeform could ever feel such hatred. It almost felt _human_.” She could only breathe out the word. “What the hell is the _Hive_ really? Where did he come from’? Why is he so anxious to get me?” The questions were once more accumulating in her brain the longer she thought about it but once the telepath slowly stood up, pulling her to her feet as well, she was able to tear away from her thoughts.

     _“You will find all your answers once we confront him. Who knows, if what you assume is correct and he really has run out of patience, maybe he will disclose his location to you when we reached the Tallest. I don’t believe he would care to wait any longer once he senses you. Don’t worry, we won’t let him harm you, I promise.”_ He added immediately as though he had already read Jenna’s next thought.

    “But what if he suddenly takes control over me?!” she blurted out and the Zar’tak cocked his head to the side, surprised.

    _“I thought the queen’s ritual prevented him from doing that…”_ he said in turn but she heard the caution in his mental voice.

    “It does… at least he can’t seem to do it from a distance. But let’s just assume we get all the way to his hideout and I’m standing right in front of him, face to face.” The mere idea made her tremble once more and she shook her head indignantly to get a hold of herself. “So I’m standing before him… what if that’s close enough for him to somehow… unblock the Scouts in my brain again? I dunno, I can’t think of a better phrase.” She added apologetic and waited anxiously for his reaction.

The Zar’tak’s emotionless reptilian face didn’t betray any of his own thoughts, though, and Jenna had no Pakrit inside her to look for herself. Then, suddenly, he let go of her and took a step back.

    _“That is indeed an… important argument. Excuse me, I will have to discuss this with Commander Tork.”_

    “Wait!” Jenna quickly grabbed one of his paws with both of her hands before he was able to teleport out. The five green eyes darted down towards her hands with a surprised flash. “You’re in on this too?! So Set and Tork _did_ plan something in secrecy!” She made no effort to hide the feeling of betrayal in her voice. But when Zar just kept his calm gaze resting on her and then gently covered her hands with two more of his paws, giving them a reassuring squeeze, she suddenly felt unsure again.

    _“I understand that you’re afraid. You’re afraid that, not being inaugurated in everything, could lead to you not knowing what to do in a crucial moment, resolving in something happening to your friends and your team just because you did not know the entire plan.”_ The Zar’tak said evenly, as if it wasn’t that big of a deal that he had just pulled her biggest fear out into the light before she had even been able to paraphrase it. His eyes were glowing slightly, giving away that he was using the fraction of his sovereign’s power to help Jenna.

 _“I promise you, there is nothing you don’t already know. Besides…”_ he raised the fourth of his paws, the others still clasped around her hands, and gently poked her forehead with a plump finger, giving her brain a light but pleasant electrical shock. _“As soon as you use the Pakrit for this mission, you will know all our secrets anyway if you wish to.”_

    “Oh.” Jenna just did, dumbfounded. He was right, she hadn’t thought about this at all until now.

    _“I will merely advise the Commander that we have another, uncertain risk factor to consider – pardon the phrasing. He is going to make according arrangements with the crew and above all he will inform Set so that he will be able to react in time and immobilize you, should it really come to the worst, until we’ve taken out either the_ Hive _himself, or his means to assume control over you.”_

Again he took a step back, almost bumping into the end wall of the tiny cabin, and carefully freed his paws from Jenna’s grasp, who finally let go of him and stepped back herself. Then he raised his head, jaws slightly opening into a toothy, snake like grin as he peered at something in the distance.

    _“You should probably get dressed now. Reliat is in the hallway and it seems he’s on his way to you.”_ With this the telepath vanished in a small cloud of black smoke. Jenna was still staring at the spot where his glowing eyes had been a second ago, trying confounded to understand what he'd meant by that, when someone knocked at her door and she flinched at the sound.

    “Jenna? Are you up yet? Dr. Nemon and I wanted to perform some last checks before… before we’re off.”

Her eyes shot downwards, to her naked legs and the overall she was still holding in one hand, and then she realized what was happening and already tried to shove a foot into the pant leg of her suit.

    “Oh! Yeah! Reliat! I’m- I’m _up_ , just- give me a sec, okay’?”  
  


When Jenna opened the door to her cabin at last, Reliat had an amused look on his face, his upper pair of eyes surrounded by laugh lines, stubbornly standing their ground between the signs of stress from the last hundred cycles, giving the stout Ilenian his good-natured apparel in addition to his chubby body. Thus Jenna couldn’t help but smile back at him as she hugged the prospective doctor. She was still a bit shocked that the talk with Zar and a night without any nightmares had been enough to reduce her own tension by a huge amount. Now she probably would have to thank Set either way.

    “Hey, how’s things in the MedBay?” She asked with a bit of a bad conscience. Because of the preparations for the coming attack and all the chaos ever since her return, she hadn’t gotten any spare time to visit the MedBay, let alone pick up on her old work and help Nemon and his assistants out.

Reliat shrugged with his broad shoulders.

    “It’s quiet, eerily quiet, I gotta admit. I mean, it’s good that the Irkens aren’t flying any more attacks on us, so now we have time to care for those who got more severe injuries in the previous fights. But… I don’t like this one bit.”

She nodded in agreement while they made their way through the belly of the _Vengeance_. Set had made sure they would get a cabin fairly close to the MedBay, just in case. While he hadn’t exactly elaborated to her on which cases he meant in particular, she could very well make an educated guess and not be too far off. The hallways were mostly empty; pretty much anyone not currently in training was busy sprucing up their own gear for the attack, or help the other rebels with theirs. To Tork’s utter surprise, an entire squad of ground fighters had volunteered to transfer over to the Prerk nest and get accustomed with the tech of their fighters in order to fight alongside the pilot fleet. And anyone else who wouldn’t fight or didn’t belong to the medical staff had been assigned to reinforce the _Vengeance_ ’s hull with the steel from the demolished camp buildings, safe for the command central, which was still in use to coordinate the fleet’s attack on the armada.

    “Let’s just hope that luck’s on our side for once…” Jenna muttered, lost in thoughts.  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ooooh shit son it's going down, anyone who yells timber will get shoveled in the head! I'm off to work now but I'll try to write more elaborate commentary once I'm back ♥


	105. Attack - Pt. 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [C U R I O S I T Y Twitter](https://twitter.com/CURIOSITYupdate)

###  **-  33 Attack –**

****  
**Part 2**

  
  
The _Vengeance_ ’s MedBay was, admittedly, a lot bigger than that of the _Rebellion,_ understandably if you took the massive size of the Vortian warship into account, but other than that it didn’t differ in any way from the one Jenna had met Nemon in the very first time. What seemed to be an eternity ago. But she recalled it in every little detail: how afraid she had been, afraid that Set’s wrath would lead him to her sooner or later. How alert and wary she had been at the start, her fear of probably having to experience the pain in her still shattered body all over once again, and then this staggering relief, realizing she was finally, truly, safe. Somehow she tried to wish that moment back. That hope.

Then the MedBay’s overall noise jerked her from her memories and she eyed her surroundings closer. In here it was already a lot busier than anywhere else on the ship; assistants and nurses were hurrying around between countless stretchers and treated their patients with the same unswerving calmness and professional care Jenna had already been able to witness back on the home planet of the rebels.

Reliat gently grabbed her arm and pulled her along behind him through the vast room, moving between the bustling assistants with the sureness of a sleepwalker despite his stout build. It was, most likely, one of the many advantages of having _four_ eyes.

Jenna trusted Reliat’s maneuverability enough to take another look around the MedBay while she hurried after him. Confused, she drew her eyebrows together as she counted the occupied stretchers and then turned to her friend: “Hey, Reliat? How come the injured are all _here_? Isn’t it a bit risky to have them all aboard the _Vengeance_ when we attack?” she whispered alarmed.

The Ilenian neither stopped in his tracks nor did he look over his shoulder to answer her, but she saw that he shrugged.

    “Tork ordered us to bring them all here. When the armada strikes back, they’ll also bombard the moon and there they would all be without any protection, even in the underground Bay. Up here we have at least a chance to save them…” He seemed to want to add something else but quickly fell silent again. Yet Jenna could finish the sentence herself: _If we don’t_ all _die up there._

They turned into another hallway where the swarming of the doctors and nurses calmed a bit more but Reliat led her deeper into the backmost part of the MedBay, where Jenna imagined the labs were situated. And indeed, behind the next door was a very concentrated Nemon, studying multiple scans on a big holoscreen and taking more notes on a Datapad. If you didn’t know any better you might be thinking that this was just like any other day in the Bay. And if you left out Set who was leaning against one of the workbenches, already clad in his armor, watching each of Nemon’s movements with the alertness of a hawk, antennae flatly pressed to his head one moment and in the next they’d shoot up an inch.

Now his head snapped around to the door just as they stepped inside and without any delay in the motion he pushed off the table to cross the room with long strides and bend down to her. Jenna had to smile involuntarily. There he was again, her possessive, caring invader. It seemed as though he really meant to keep his promise to not let her out of sight for one second anymore.

After a deep kiss, during which his tongue boldly slipped between her lips for a second, Set eyed her closely from head to toe and the deep crease between his eyes smoothed a little, though it never went away completely.

    “How are you feeling? Did you get enough sleep?” he asked with a barely contained, affectionate chirp and lifted her chin with a metal finger so she would look him in the eyes. Jenna nodded and was already about to chide him good-naturedly for letting her sleep this long, but she never got the chance.

It only lasted for the blink of an eye, like a flash the image appeared before her eyes and the next second it was already gone again. Yet she saw it in every little, gruesome detail: Set’s lifeless and mutilated body, pierced by countless spiderlegs and covered in blood, so much blood that it couldn’t all be his own. A stinging pain shot through her brain along with the horrible picture and Jenna had to glance away in terror, afraid she could conjure it up again just by looking at Set for too long. Her breath was shallow, a feeling of nausea threatened to choke her and her palms felt cold from the sweat on them.

    “Jenna? What’s wrong?”

It was only one of the scenes the _Hive_ had shown her, no, had _forced_ into her head the night she had promised to turn herself in and then hadn’t shown up, over and over again, each image more horrible than the ones before. He would kill him. He would kill them all, he-

    “Jenna…” Set’s concerned voice now had a warning tone to it and she knew he would personally ram a syringe with tranquilizers into her arm if she didn’t answer him within the next two seconds. So she forced herself to breathe slowly and deeply and, most of all, return his piercing glare. She hadn’t even noticed that he had grabbed her shoulders with both hands.

    “I’m… I’m okay.” She croaked out, not very convincingly, and the crease between Set’s eyes deepened promptly. Quickly she swallowed to rehydrate her dried out tongue, and nodded again, firmer. “Not losing control, don’t worry. It- it was a flashback. From the nightmares. What… what he showed me. About you.” Only when she breathed that out, Set seemed to understand and exhaled sharply but relieved before he drew her to his body, running one hand slowly through her hair. Jenna used the short moment of hiding her face against the hard material of his armor to calm down further. She was just hoping that she wouldn’t get one of those flashbacks during the attack.

Nemon cleared his throat quietly and Set let her go reluctantly to turn towards the doctor. Reliat had joined him, taking notes on his own Datapad now, though whether they were concerning the brain scans or her flashback she couldn’t tell.

    “Jenna, are you sure you’re alright? Or should we better perform another scan?” Nemon asked, not any less concerned than Set and now she nodded vehemently.

    “I’m done with scans, really.” She admitted and walked up to the two Ilenians to finally look at her brain now, too – Set always at her heel and, without a doubt, ready to catch her should she faint after all. She tried not to think about him too much, _one_ terrifying negative of her visions was already enough for today.  

Of course Jenna was familiar with MRI scans and x-ray images from Earth, she had even participated in an advanced training course for three-dimensional ultrasonic imaging during her schooling to get extra points in her final semester. But she was still wrecking her brain about how in the world the tech of this machine Nemon had scanned her with was supposed to work. He had tried to explain to her how it created those images. In fact, it used multiple lasers, though they weren’t exactly optical lasers but more like electromagnetic rays of energy which, also similar to an MRI, scanned the respective part of the body layer by layer to compile those into a three-dimensional image. The only thing that made Nemon’s miracle-machine really different from a human MRI was the sheer _resolution_. And the extras.

While doctors on Earth would stare unsure and helpless at a slightly darkened and blurred spot on the brain-scan of a patient with nobody really able to pin down what this spot might be, Nemon would just zoom in so closely he could analyze every goddamn _cell_ in 3D as if it was a simulation. And to cap it all the machine was able to simultaneously monitor every patient’s vitals who’d lay down on the wide couch _and_ analyze their blood gases. It even resembled an open MRI scanner optically as well: a pretty wide, pretty comfortable couch big enough to accommodate to all possible frames and sizes of the different alien species, and a very delicate, very inconspicuous metal arm stretching over it that would first pan slowly over to the body part Nemon had previously entered into the machine, then move up and down a few times to calibrate itself and then turn into a hissing, blurred silhouette, racing back and forth faster than the (human) eye could see. After one minute the scan was completed.   

The first time around, the machine (A Meekrobian Omniscanner by the way) had reminded her so much of the synthesizer, with which Set had installed a semi-synthetic knee into her leg way back when, that she’d almost jumped off the couch before Reliat had enough time to react and catch her.

Unfortunately Jenna didn’t have much experience in interpreting these high-resolution scans herself, why she now waved her hand completely helplessly at the image of her own brain.           

    “What am I looking at here, Nemon?” she asked after a frustrated sigh. The Ilenian was controlling the holoscreen through his own Datapad and quickly typed away on it until the scan changed. Instead of a real life, human brain they were looking at a bluish, schematic depiction which would have fitted perfectly into an episode of CSI: Miami. Jenna scrunched up her nose at that thought.

But then she noticed the many dark, somehow double-walled holes in the brain-scan (yes, those were _holes_ alright!) and she took a step towards the screen in start. “Nemon?” she tried again, her throat feeling constricted and causing her voice to shake slightly. “What the _hell_ are those?!”

She didn’t want to panic again yet her body was still so very wrought up from the nightmares and the scare from her flashback that she could feel her composure slipping. But Nemon was too calm about this, it couldn’t be something bad if he was still so at ease, right? Still she felt her heartbeat speeding up and her knees turning into jelly, until, out of the blue, the touch of a hand on her shoulder made her tear her widened eyes away from the image and turn around. At first she’d thought it was Set but the invader was staring at her brain almost twice as shocked as she was, his crimson eyes large and round, reflecting the picture of the completely disfigured brain.

Thus she was all the more surprised when she met the gaze out of five green eyes, looking back at her absolutely relaxed before they blinked lazily in a Mexican wave. Jerked from her own panic like that, Jenna had no idea what to say, let alone think, and regarded the Zar’tak instead, what surprised her once more.

He was wearing a thin chest plate over the usual black overall the rebels wore, which emitted a palpable wave of static energy and was connected to some sort of cap on his head over two thick cables behind his back.

    _“Calm down, Jenna. Your brain is going to be alright.”_ He gently said inside her mind and even sounded a little amused what made her look up into his eyes again. And she was right: his strange reptilian grin deepened the creases in the leathery skin around his eyes in a familiar way. Nemon stepped beside the black telepath and gave him a grateful nod.

    “He’s right, Jenna. I was just about to explain.” He pointed at the many small, black spots in her grey matter and Jenna suddenly realized they weren’t, as she had initially feared, located in the layer of her neurons but beneath them, in between the axons of her neural cells. Now more intrigued again she stepped closer. “Every black spot you see is a Scout-cluster, as I call it.” Nemon explained factually, but not at all able to hide the excitement in his voice. Behind her back she heard Set take a sharp breath.

    “And why didn’t this occur to you sooner?” He demanded to know and sounded so accusing that Jenna turned around to him to gently take his hand into hers. The invader briefly glanced down on her, but she saw that this wasn’t enough to stop his rant. “I thought you were monitoring her brain since the incident in Tork’s quarter on the _Rebellion_!”

    “Oh, well, we weren’t exactly able to _see_ the Scouts like this before.” Nemon interjected after he had shaken off his initial confusion. “As you may recall, we couldn’t even discern them from metabolite plaques, an unobtrusive layer in close vicinity to her blood-vessels where they had breached her blood-liquor barrier. This right here,” her circled a few of the shadows with a fingertip, “is _new_. In fact, they weren’t there until Jenna’s return from the nest of the Prerk.” For comparison he showed them one of the last scans they had made before her cryostasis. On this you really only could see the Scouts as fine crumbs, like a thin layer of grease.

Jenna understood.

    “So _that’s_ what happened when the queen forced me to drink the blood!” She recalled that, afterwards, under the influence of the Pakrit, she had been able to observe very clearly how an entire army of phagocytes had invaded her brain, accompanied by crushing headaches reminding her of the symptoms of meningitis. “The macrophages from my blood attacked the Scouts and enclosed them in a granuloma! Hence the dark spots!” The words were pouring from her lips when she finally made sense of all this.

But then she faltered, frowning. “But… why now? Why didn’t my cells try to fight them sooner?” she mumbled into the room and turned to Nemon, seeking his help, but he nodded towards Reliat with a proud smile and his student was looking like he had been waiting this entire time to shout out the answer.

Ecstatic that he could finally start now, he punched a few lines into his Datapad and showed them some statistics to Jenna’s blood levels of the last days, mainly the inflammation parameters she and Nemon had defined together.

    “During our first checkup after your return, your levels were still alarmingly high, what we ascribed to the parasite infection at first. But when you told me how much Irken blood you had been forced to drink and the way your body reacted to it, I began to wonder.”

He briefly explained how he had managed to reconstruct the original levels of her parameters right after she’d drunk the blood, by analyzing the remaining amount and calculating their metabolite’s half-life period.

    “We came to the conclusion that the sudden flood of more Scouts induced such a strong immune reaction in your body that it mobilized the entirety of your cells against them. But at the same time it also led to the scenario Nemon had apprehended before.”

    “An anaphylactic shock. A complete collapse of my immune system.” Jenna breathed out stunned. Nemon and Reliat shared a nod while Set looked back and forth between them, without really understanding but still wary. Zar was, as always, as silent and as cool as a cucumber.

    “Which you actually were supposed to die of, should it ever happen.” Nemon finished her train of thoughts but then left it to his student again to elaborate.

    “But we didn’t take the Pakrit’s effects into account! My theory is, and I’m pretty sure about it, that the incredible power of the Pakrit boosted your immune cells so that they were strong enough to overwhelm the Scouts, unlike before, otherwise they would have done so long ago. And they somehow managed to partially phagocyte the Scouts, damaging them in the process, which would explain why the _Hive_ can’t use them anymore to take control over you. Your strengthened phagocytes entrapped the Scouts’ remains in the granulomas within your brain since they couldn’t completely destroy them, so the _Hive_ is still able to contact and sense you. But the probably most important reason why you didn’t die from it, as we thought before, is the Pakrit’s healing effect on you that saved you from dying of the anaphylactic shock and which created new neurons in your brain to compensate the loss of cells due to the granulomas.”

Deeply satisfied with his analysis, Reliat crossed his arms in front of his chest and nodded once with a pleased grin. Jenna returned the nod impressed.

But to Nemon the whole affair wasn’t finished just yet: “Jenna, now this might sound to you like just a relatively simple explanation, but there is more to it; if we manage to destroy the _Hive_ we might be able to safely remove those granulomas from your brain and relieve you of the Scouts once and for all. Probably.” He repeated pointedly when she was already about to utter something relieved, and the look out of his four brown eyes was sober. “I am not sure. There is something we still haven’t understood yet, I’m certain of it. And now please excuse me, I have to check on our patients again before the attack.”

With this Nemon gathered his Datapads and left the lab with quick steps. Only now Jenna noticed how extremely tense the Chief Medical Officer had been the entire time. Even Nemon, wise, gentle, caring Nemon, was bracing himself to probably die in this fight. Once again Jenna felt anger rise inside her, at which Zar hummed soothingly and gently nudged her hand with one of his.

    _“We will make it.”_ He just said and she sighed.

Set’s Chronometer went off with a loud bleep and the Irken had whipped it out before the tone had the chance to die away. He read the message on the display two times and then gave the Zar’tak an inviting nod.

    “Tork. He wants the SI-team to meet him in his quarter to brief us all one more time before we hit.” He noticed her confused and alarmed look and smirked at her. “Stealth and Infiltration team. It’s okay, I know you were too tired to remember everything from the training yesterday.” He already wanted to lead Jenna out of the lab with his hand on her shoulder when Reliat suddenly took a step towards them and held Jenna back.

    “Jenna, can I talk to you for a second?” he started, his previously so confident voice now expressing concern. Set had stopped as well and was looking at the heavyset Ilenian expectantly, as was Zar. Though the telepath teleported out of the room only a heartbeat later without another word. “Uhm… _alone_ , if that’s possible.” Reliat added pointed but not without the appropriate hint of caution and a quick glance upwards to Set. Jenna smiled tiredly when she heard her lover – God, she loved him so much despite him acting up like that – hiss indignantly.

    “Come on Set, go, I’ll find you.” She said indulgently and squeezed the big hand still one her shoulder affectionately. Almost instantly his antennae lay back somewhat more relaxed and he gave a short huff.

    “Sure. I’ll come get you once you’ve gotten lost enough.” He teased her and bent down to press his lips into her short hair for a second before he left the lab as well, the heavy boots of his armor thudding on the metal floor.

Jenna waited until the door had closed again, then she turned to Reliat with a raised eyebrow.

    “Something I need to worry about?” she asked carefully but the Ilenian just swayed his head from side to side. All of a sudden he seemed less and less confident and scratched the back of his head. “Come now Rel, out with it.”

    “Okay.” He slowly exhaled and then returned her gaze. “I have another… well, not exactly a theory, it’s just… something is off. And it bothers me.”

Jenna’s brow automatically furrowed. That wasn’t like Reliat to express himself so vaguely.

    “What is it?” she urged him gently and walked over to him, resting her hip against one of the workbenches so they were standing next to each other and she wasn’t distracting him with her probing glare anymore.

    “The _Hive_. What exactly are his motives? Is he really just evil and wants to enslave the entire galaxy? And is he aware that he is considered _evil_ by any other species? Pure evil? The fact alone that he has a gender! I can’t really wrap my head around it… you thought it was strange from the start but I’m only starting to think about it that way… why would he risk everything he’s built to this point just to get his hands on you? He could just go and get any other human from Earth, you know? It just doesn’t make any sense to make these huge efforts!”

Jenna felt a sudden horror flaring up inside her when she tried to imagine the _Hive_ could send someone to abduct her family or her friends… but she let Reliat continue.

“And then the whole deal with the Pakrit… what it lets you do… the telepathy, the manipulation of matter and it even enabled you to fly! Well, float but you get what I’m saying, right? I don’t know why, but it reminds me of the Zar’tak and the Meekrob. Doesn’t it?” he suddenly asked her directly and she shook her head numbed.

    “I don’t know… the Meekrob studied the Pakrit for so long and they couldn’t make any sense of it. They didn’t even know where his species came from, only that the _Hive_ was, allegedly the last of his kind and had already destroyed a few galaxies before he came to this one and found the Irkens. To me it sounds like he’s the exact opposite of the Meekrob… who knows, maybe somewhere out there, eons ago, _someone_ developed a synthetic life form similar to the Meekrob… or something entirely different, I really don’t know Reliat.” She shook her head again and tried to think back to the moments when the _Hive_ had contacted her, shown her the horrors he had in store for them. “Regarding his past or what his ultimate goal is, he didn’t show me anything. Only that he’s going to destroy us all. Even me. Eventually.” She uttered quietly and felt goose-bumps spreading over her arms beneath the fabric of her overall.

“It scares me not knowing what awaits us.” She admitted. “If I _knew_ what we’re really up against it would be so much easier. But the way things are…”

Reliat nodded understanding and then looked at her almost begging.

    “Promise me that you’ll be careful, alright?” he suddenly blurted out and she returned his scared stare with a crooked grin.

    “I will, don’t worry. If _you_ promise to watch out for Car and yourself for me.”  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the hiatus.. again, real life stuff kept me in the dumps but I'll try to punch the next chapter out till next Sunday/Monday! Love you guys, thanks for sticking around ♥
> 
> also lots of science stuff again ^^; needed to explain stuff


	106. Attack - Pt. 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [C U R I O S I T Y Twitter](https://twitter.com/CURIOSITYupdate)   
>  [C U R I O S I T Y playlists on Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/user/thetruemek)

**-  33 Attack –**

  
**Part 3  
**

  
  
Jenna left the MedBay after parting from Reliat and, against Set’s prediction, she didn’t get lost in the seemingly endless hallways of the _Vengeance_.

While she kept following the map on her Chronometer to Tork’s, her mind involuntarily returned to the dark thoughts she had been having for the last… she had to think back briefly but couldn’t pin down the exact amount of days, cycles, whatever. She got the feeling that all she had ever been, since the attack of the Vortian traitor, was tensed up and anticipating the worst. As though her subconscious mind knew from the start that this day and these determining last moments before the fight were imminently looming ahead and that her attempted kidnapping had only set the hare running.

Tork’s private quarters were also pretty close to the MedBay. Nemon had assured her there was nothing to be worried about, since the Commander was doing more than fine since her intervention, but this shortly before the attack nobody was going to take any unnecessary risks, least of all Tork.

Jenna turned around the last corner to Tork’s cabin and was faced with a broad metal chest. Automatically she laid her head back and gave Ironhead a quick nod, even managing a little smile. The Steelhunter returned the greeting indulging and took a crunching step to the side to let the small human enter before he shifted back to his former position in front of the door.

It was dark in Tork’s quarters, a big holoscreen was projecting the already frighteningly familiar attack schematics onto the wall behind Tork. The room was filled to the brim with aliens, the members of their stealth team, standing in a more or less upright position in front of the plan and listening intently to their Commander who was explaining right now, in a low and calm voice, how the preparations for reinforcing the Vengeance were coming along as well as the last-minute arrangement of the pilots training with the Prerk’s aerial squad.

Jenna tried to squeeze past all the fighters as sneakily as possible but when a dark silhouette suddenly moved next to her she squeaked startled and a majority of the heads turned around to her, Set’s included, who was standing right next to Tork and had been letting his piercing glare wander over the solemn faces of the recruits to look for signs of fear (or battle fatigue).

    “Jenna.” Greeted the black silhouette next to her in a neutral tone and she recognized Ink, almost vanishing in the darkness of the room thanks to his black skin just like Zar, who Jenna spotted in a corner not a second later when she heard his telltale chuckle echoing in her mind.

Tork interrupted his presentation only briefly to nod at Jenna. But then he seemed to think it over and did a quick series of hand-signs, pointing first at Jenna, then himself, closing his fist and turning it outside while bringing it down, before he picked up where he left off, going through the points he wanted to discuss with them as if nothing had happened.

She tried frantically to remember what these commands were supposed to mean again. Sure, first gesture said she was to come to him. But what was that with the fist again?! Was it now? Or… an hour later? Dammit, why had she even gotten herself into this mess with the pissed _Hive_ stealing her sleep? If she hadn’t been so stupid (and drunk) she wouldn’t have been so tired at the training session the next day and…

    _“You’re supposed to stay after the briefing is over. He has something he wants to discuss with you alone.”_ The Zar’tak enlightened her, having observed her inner turmoil no doubt. Grateful, Jenna raised her eyes to where he was standing and she almost would’ve given him a thumbs-up but could hold herself back in time. Instead she tried to send something back to him, or at least have a thought clear enough for him to read it with ease.

    _I don’t know if it’s the best idea when you help me out like that all the time. You can’t always be there and whisper the right answers to me._

She saw the way his green eyes narrowed in the dimness of the room as if he was smiling but his answer was just a mental flick against her brain to call her back to attention and Jenna finally focused on Tork’s briefing.

By and large he wasn’t telling them anything new. They would fly into the capital, veiled by the queen’s shielding song and hidden under the general chaos, and fight their way towards the Tower where they would take the Tallest hostage and force them to disclose the _Hive’_ s location.

Set threw in some details now and then, which specific maneuvers of the Irken jet fighters they would have to watch out for while in the transporter, or at which points on their route they would be forced to change positions fast, stuff like that. And then of course the usual phrases of caution: Watch your back, watch your shots and if you get separated from the team try to battle your way towards the tower, the only checkpoint they had set, and do as much damage as you possibly can without kicking the bucket.

Admittedly, the latter was more of a kamikaze-strategy than really strategically valuable but by now they had all silently agreed that this would be the last battle of the Resistance, their last stand, one way or another. They would either walk out of this victorious or they would get destroyed trying.

Jenna shuddered at the thought, no, the _certainty_ , that there were only those two possible outcomes and out of an impulse she wanted to run over to Set. She would be safe with him. But then she berated herself and shook her head gruffly. Ridiculous, once she had taken the Pakrit she would be unstoppable, _she_ would be the safest point in their ranks!

Tork was just done wrapping up his briefing and Jenna retreated a bit closer to the wall when the mass of rebels started moving towards the door. This time there was no premature boasting, no boisterous tussle like before the assault on the _Massive_. Everyone kept their silence, wearing the same sober, _final_ facial expression as they left Tork’s quarters.

She waited until the door had closed itself behind the last laggers, only after that she approached the Commander and, not very surprising, Set and the Zar’tak, who were still standing right where they had been standing before, shooting her both an expectant glance. But then she noticed the look on Set’s face was rather angry and she tilted her head to the side inquisitively when she was close enough to look up to him. Immediately he stepped around and behind her, wrapping his arm around her shoulder so that his entire forearm was shielding her from whatever was to come now.

Tork turned around to them, threw Set a cocked eyebrow and then crossed his arms behind his back.

    “Jenna, good to see you finally awake as well. How are you feeling?” he started confabular yet she felt the suppressed rumbling in Set’s massive torso and just nodded in return.

The Vortian took the cue at once and cut to the chase. “Okay, listen. There’s a change of plan.”

That word caused the growl in her back to vibrate stronger and she raised a hand to stroke soothingly over Set’s arm. “And as you can probably already imagine,” again a slightly annoyed glare up towards the ex-invader, “you’re not gonna like it.”

    _“However, it is necessary.”_ Zar budged in unasked, probably also to convince Set of just that necessity, what of course had the entirely opposite effect, as always when someone tried to reason with the previously angered Irken, who was just now baring his teeth at Tork.

    “Okay,” Jenna said slowly, not wanting to prolong this but at the same time alarmed by Set’s behavior. “I’m listening. What kind of change? Just so you know, I’m still coming with!” she added, suddenly scared, but then she realized that in this case Set would probably be anything else but angry, and she faltered.

Tork had been closely watching her reactions and now stretched out his arms as he announced: “We decided it’d be for the best if you don’t take the Pakrit at first.”

Jenna just stared at him.

Her brain seemed to have difficulties deciphering that phrase and make some sense of it. But it didn’t make sense. Had she probably misunderstood his Vortian? Mixed up the languages again?

    “What?” she asked weakly and felt how the big arm around her torso flexed beneath the hard armor.

    “Tork and the Zar’tak believe it’s too dangerous to use the Pakrit right off the bat when we’re closing in on Irk.” Set hissed behind her. “They’re afraid your energy is going to be too strong, and will penetrate the queen’s shield, blowing our cover before we even get the chance to land. You should wait until we’re inside the tower.” He spat out a contemptuous snarl.

That’s when she understood. And now it made perfect sense why Set was so outraged!

    “But… but then I’d be completely useless to the team!” she called out aghast and now freed herself from his embrace to walk up to Tork and gesture helplessly at herself. “Tork, you know exactly what a lousy soldier I am without the Pakrit! I can’t shoot for Chrissake, I- I can’t-“

The Commander interrupted her panicked stammering by catching her hands in his and giving them a squeeze. His red eyes were piercing into hers with such authority inside them that Jenna automatically closed her mouth and held her breath.

    “Which is why,” the Vortian explained quietly, his voice leveled and calm, “you won’t leave Set’s side for one second, not until I give you the go ahead to take the Pakrit, you understand me? You’ll get a handgun so you’re not completely helpless and you got your armor with the emergency-Pakrit in case everything goes down the drain after all. Nemon’s going to join the team as well, another little change of plan. He threatened me to sneak on board if I wouldn’t assign him to the stealth team myself. Hmph.” He snorted briefly and then looked at her a bit softer. “And even if I’m repeating myself, you’re still the most important element in this operation. We can’t risk losing you, even if it means taking a disadvantage concerning the strike force of our team. Are we clear?”

Only when she gave him a nod in return he let go of her hands, winked at her and then turned to Set, though he had to lay his head way back himself to stare at him angrily. “And as for you, you walking, talking pain in my ass: You _know_ your orders. And besides, it was _your_ intuition concerning the Pakrit.” Tork grinned when he noticed Set pressing his antennae flatly to his head, exposed, grumbling to himself. But then his look turned serious again. “You still got six Ti before we attack. Get some more rest or train some more, but don’t exhaust yourselves too much. And now off with ya.”

With this Jenna and Set were relieved and they kept looking at Tork’s back for a few moments longer while Zar vanished with a quiet noise into thin air.

She wanted to say something, anything. Tork seemed way too relaxed considering the situation, way too sure they would win. But even he couldn’t possibly know what was awaiting them!

Jenna didn’t know what to say, her emotions were still all over the place; fear, uncertainty, but also her love for these aliens, no, these _people_ , they were all raging inside of her, just barely held together by her thinning weave of nerves and her feeling of responsibility. She knew the weight resting on their shoulders all too well, all the lives they were fighting for and even those that might be in a distant future.

    “Thank you, Tork.” She heard herself say and was surprised how steady her voice sounded and how right these words were. “Thank you for everything.”

The older Vortian didn’t turn around to her, just looked over his shoulder and gave her a crooked grin, showing a hint of little, pointy teeth that had lost none of their sharpness despite all those years and fights.

    “Not at all, kid.” He replied calmly but also good-humored and she could sense, albeit slightly, the deep emotions hiding behind that simple sentence, touching her soul nonetheless and making the same feelings – fondness and closeness – sing inside her. She gave him a determined nod and then turned away to leave.

But just before she was through the door another image flashed before her inner eye. An image of Tork the _Hive_ had shown her. Jenna stopped mid-step and grabbed the doorframe with one hand. Her fingertips burned when she dug them into the metal, hard enough to make her knuckles pierce her skin white as snow. All the positive emotions from just now had been wiped away, despair and fear took over her again and doubled the weight on her soul. It was hopeless, they _would_ fail and she would lose everything! Again…

    Set saw how she tensed up all of a sudden, turning pale and clawing at the doorframe as if it was her only lifeline. His sensible antennae picked up the barely audible catch of her breath in her throat and he reacted instinctively, using his finely trained senses that he had always fixed on her to resolve the situation.

In a heartbeat he was at her side, wrapped his big, metallic hand all around her back and underneath her arm and picked her up like she was weighing nothing. Which was true, despite the heavy belt around her hip.

Jenna was still clutching the doorframe but now he could her hear frantic gasp for air and at that sound Tork turned around to them, alarmed. Set ignored the searching gaze of his Commander in his back and chirped calmingly into Jenna’s ear while his other hand pulled, as gently as he managed to, every single one of her cramped fingers from the doorframe, taking her small hand into his and squeezing it just tight enough to get her attention.

    “We’ll skip the training for today. I think you need some _calming down_ first and foremost.” He noted murmuring and felt her tense up for a second before her gaze cleared a little more and she nodded slowly while her eyes – big, green and full of gratitude – searched his.

    “That… that sounds like a great idea, actually.” She whispered back, a little choked up but at least not so horrified anymore. Set nodded and pressed a quick kiss to her temple before he set her down on the ground again and waited a second to see whether she could stand on her own, leaving Tork’s quarter right behind her.

 

Silently they walked alongside each other, back to their own cabin. Now and then Set’s hand would brush against her arm and each touch was like a small electric shock jolting through her body and making her heart speed up in anticipation. Jenna bit down on her lower lip, trying to suppress a smile.

    “Thanks.” She mumbled quietly and the hand placed itself on her nape to scratch her tenderly with sharp fingertips, causing a wave of goosebumps to race over her arms from the pleasant sensation and Jenna heaved a quiet sigh.

    “Soon everything will be over, I promise.” Set replied just as quietly and wrapped his fingers around her throat to squeeze gently. He felt her pulse quickening slightly beneath the palm of his hand and had to fight a wide grin down himself.

When they arrived in front of their door Jenna turned around to him, still chewing on her bottom lip, an innocent and at the same time completely lewd expression on her face at which Set had to compose himself to not push her against the door right here and now and…

He gave her an inviting nod towards the door and Jenna spun around quickly, now grinning after all, to open their room with her Chronometer. He couldn’t help but wonder how she would react.

Jenna could barely keep still until the door had finally opened and already wanted to pull Set inside behind her, when her eyes picked up the scene unrolling before her in the dim light of the small room and she stopped like frozen.

Dozens, no, hundreds of little lights on fine strings stretched across the room, hanging from the ceiling and had been arranged along the walls on the floor like a glowing path. A datapad and two small Dilamite crystals were neatly placed on the bed.

She opened her mouth and yet didn’t find any words. Finally she slowly turned around to him, confused, and saw the smug grin on his face. Set’s eyes were glistening in the warm shine of the small lights and his antennae whipped through the air, the only evidence of his own excitement.

    “You like it?” he asked and she heard within that he already knew she liked it. _Loved_ it, actually.

    “Yes… but… _how_? How did you know- I mean, how did you do it? Wow… Set! This is…” she gasped out an amazed laughter and raised a hand to touch one of the tiny, gelatinous light bulbs before she turned back towards him, laying her head back. “That’s so romantic?” she whispered, still confused. His grin became a tad wider so she was able to see the sharp teeth behind it. Set stretched out his arms, embracing it all.

    “I figured I owed you something like this.” Then he faltered a little and stroked back his antennae. “I wanted our last hours before the fight to be… nice. Happy. But now it sounds like…”

    “Like we’re not coming back.” Jenna finished the sentence and nodded thoughtfully.

They stayed silent for a moment; once more the _Hive_ ’s shadow had managed to lay its weight over them like a suffocating cloud of poisonous gas.

Suddenly Jenna jumped up against him and Set wrapped his arms around her middle, taken by surprise, to hold her tight when she pulled herself up on his shoulders to reach his mouth and kiss him stormily. Her hands found his antennae and he uttered a startled moan that came out muffled from beneath her lips as she ran her tongue along his.

    “I love it, Set. It’s perfect.” She breathed upon letting up on him for a second to catch her own breath. “I love _you_!” And she kissed him again.

His hands clawed into the fabric of her overall in an impulse to just rip it off of her but he could control himself at the last second. Instead he slid them around her ass to lift her up higher and reach her neck with his mouth where he immediately sucked a big bruise on the soft skin, nipping it with his teeth.

    “I love you more.” He growled aroused and walked slowly towards the bed with her in his arms. It was difficult focusing on walking and what was happening to his antennae at the same time. He hissed stifled when she took one of them in her mouth and lightly sucked on it, chuckling.

    “Oh really, you wanna play that game with me?” she smirked sarcastic and squealed startled when he just fell over with her and sprawled on the bed. Trapped in his arms, Jenna pressed against him and wrapped her legs around his waist while she was already struggling with the fastener of his overall.       

    “Mmh, no,” he rounded flush against her neck and his hands palmed up over her back and then her sides, “I think you now exactly what game I’m gonna play with you.” His voice this close to her ear made her hold her breath involuntarily until a barely contained sigh escaped her lips that made him grin as his hand already slipped over her breast and squeezed it through the thick fabric.  
    “Oh yeah, right, hide the zucchini!” Jenna suddenly spluttered and couldn’t help but giggle. When she opened her eyes again she was facing two crimson slits, narrowing at her sullenly. “What? Am I ruining the mood for you?” she teased him and tried to pull him down to her by the open hem of his overall and kiss him. But Set didn’t move an inch. He was still staring at her annoyed. Since she couldn’t pull him down she pulled herself up on his collar until she reached his lips and gave him a quick kiss.

His expression didn’t change. Instead she felt that sinister rumbling vibrating against her chest again. “What, that bad?” she asked astonished, but still in her bantering tone. “Aww-aah!”

Lickety-split he had opened her overall all the way down to her hips and flipped her onto her stomach in the same motion. When Jenna tried to crawl away form under him, he wrapped his arm around her neck, grabbing her shoulder to keep her in place, while his free metal hand wedged under her body to shove between her thighs. The cold metal on her heated sex made her inhale sharply but in this moment Set flexed the arm around her throat and she only got out a half-choked noise. Despite, or more likely because the sudden, violent turn of events she started to feel hot and hazy - her body screaming for more already - while she couldn’t get out a sound herself.

    “I’ll teach you… ungrateful little thing you.” He hissed against her ear, hoarse from arousal, raking sharp teeth over her earlobe and pressing against her.

Set’s artificial digits were rubbing hard, merciless circles around her clit, she felt his erection already pushing against her thigh through his overall and she tried to rock her hips into his hand and get more friction out of his strokes. Oxygen was running low, she was already seeing dancing black dots before her eyes and yet it only made more sensitive for his touches. Her own hand grabbed his arm and she slapped it frantically. Set chuckled darkly, his breath tickling the nape of her neck, but he did relax his arm and she gasped, greedily sucking the air into her lungs and then uttered a loud moan when he pushed two fingers at once into her, grabbing her left breast with his free hand and circling her nipple with his thumb.

    “Fuck!” Jenna sobbed out, writhing in his grasp but Set didn’t leave her an inch of room to move.

    “What, had enough already?” he wanted to know, surprised but still evil, and shoved his titanium fingers particularly deep into her, causing her to arch her back and rake her nails over his arm.

    “No!” she quickly cried out back at him and tried again to curl her pelvis into his hand. “More! Please – Set! Oh fuck…” a high moan poured from her lips and made his antennae quiver. His erection was throbbing almost painfully but he wasn’t quite done with her just yet.

    “Hmmm.” He did thoughtfully and stilled, pulling his fingers slowly out of her pussy and she mewled in protest. “I don’t know if you’ve already earned it.”

Jenna twisted her head as far as she was able to in this tightness and shot him an indignant look. Then a naughty smile played around her lips.

    “And what would I have to do in order to earn me _more_?” she purred played innocently. He grinned at her and raised an eyebrow.

    “Oh I think you know exactly.”  
  


 

Afterwards they were lying completely exhausted on the bed and tried to catch their breath, Jenna sprawled out on Set’s chest, her arms feebly wrapped around his body. Her short hair was slightly curled from the damp, hot air in the cramped quarter and the thin layer of sweat covering her skin.

    “Dammit.” Jenna groused and bounced on his torso as Set laughed soundlessly.

    “What?” he asked, curious, and she looked at him with a crooked grin.

    “Didn’t Tork tell us not to exhaust ourselves? I’m not sure I’ll be able to walk out of this room.” She admitted with a snort and gently bit Set’s neck. The Irken growled with relish, crossing his arms over the small of her back and pulling her up to kiss her. Her lips tasted salty and good.

    “’s your fault. If you hadn’t mocked my romantic masterpiece the sex could have been much more relaxed.” He chided her playfully and sucked the air in between his teeth when Jenna’s small hand found the sensitive bud at the underside of his sheath and dealt it a fierce stroke that turned his squeedlyspooch into molten lava.

She gave him a devilish grin.

    “I doubt it. Knowing you I’m sure you would’ve found another excuse to turn this around so you could give it to me like that.” She husked darkly and licked his lips. Set cupped the back of her head with a big hand and kissed her roughly. If they didn’t stop soon they would go at each other all over again…

To prevent just that, and because he couldn’t wait any longer, Set suddenly sat up straight and held her tight to his chest so she wouldn’t fall off of him. Regardless Jenna gasped in start and clutched at his shoulders.

Set reached behind his back and took the Datapad and the two small Dilamite crystals Jenna had already forgotten about. Right, there had been something more than just romantic candle-light…

   “How did you pull this off? Arrange all of this? We were together almost the whole time. And where did you get those lights? Aren’t those the light strings from the Prerk queen’s chamber?” she broke off mumbling, confused again and Set grinned widely while placing the datapad down beside him and weighing the crystals in his hand.

    “I ordered SIR to do it while we were gone.” He simply explained and Jenna huffed a laugh. It was hard to imagine SIR hanging up romantic fairy lights and _not_ feel absolutely ridiculous about himself, but that was probably an advantage of being a robot. Then her eyes finally dropped to the crystals in Set’s hand and her heart leapt into her throat.

She realized that it must’ve been only one stone at first, namely the very one Set had brought her threaded on a chain back then. Now she leaned closer over his open palm and examined the two crystals. Someone had cut the original, polished the two pieces and almost completely worked them out of the black stone it had previously been embedded in. The rest of it formed two delicate rings at the base of the stones, one of them small, the other one almost twice as wide and reinforced with a shimmering metal.

Suddenly Jenna connected it all and she gasped for air audibly before her gaze shot up to his eyes and she clasped both her hands over her mouth, speechless. Her eyes were opened wide and round as marbles.

Set smiled at her and then looked down on his own hand.

    “I… I first asked Nemon what he knew about humans and if you probably told him what this human ritual with the ring, you mentioned once, was all about. He suggested I’d ask Car. And… well, turns out you really told her a bit about it so I knew I would need _two_ rings actually and had Trook cut the crystal. I also asked Car if you’d like something like this.” He pointed at the ceiling where the bioluminescent lights were shimmering. “She said you two were pretty much the same, being women and all that. Though of course you’re way more beautiful and smarter!” he reversed himself at once. Jenna cocked a brow and shook her head with a smile.

Set cleared his throat and then looked back down at his hand, lost in thoughts while she held her breath once more. Her palms were wet and it wasn’t because of their _session_ just then.

    “I… I don’t know what the future has in store for me, for us.” He finally tried, hesitating, before his eyes travelled up to her and he continued more determined: “The only thing I do know is that I love you, above anything and everything. And that I want to have you by my side forever. If you would have me.” He took the smaller ring and held it out to her.

She noticed that his hand was trembling, only slightly, almost unrecognizably and yet it did. This giant, smug, jealous and battle-tried alien, who had looked the two most horrible monsters in this galaxy in the eyes and lived to tell it, was really trembling during his proposal to her, a tiny, young (oh God she was barely 23!), vulnerable human.

Jenna had never been much of a romantic herself, never felt particularly moved at weddings and she had been firmly convinced that she wouldn’t cry if someone proposed to her. But now she felt the tears hot in her eyes, happy tears though, and a smile so wide and beaming it threatened to split her face in two as she stormily threw herself into her invader’s – her _fiancé’s_ – arms, kissing him.

    “Yes! Fuck, yes, Set, I do! I want you! Oh my God!” Again she kissed him and only let him go to let him slide the ring over her finger before she went at him again and threw him onto his back, what only worked because he realized what she was trying to do and flopped back himself.

    “Will you marry me, too?” she asked panting between two more kisses and he could only nod because she was already sealing his mouth again. Jenna laughed happily, grabbed the second ring and put it on the last finger of his right, real hand. Then she snuggled up against his chest, sniffling, and hugged him as tightly as she could. “I still can’t believe that, after all I went through because of you, I got _you_ in return in the end.” She sighed quietly and kissed his naked chest.

Set ran his hand through her hair and grinned relieved to himself, glad that she couldn’t see what weight had just been lifted off his shoulders.

    “You know, that could’ve sounded wrong in another way, don’t you think?” he teased her and pinched her butt, making her giggle and roll onto her side to scoot closer to him, stretching her arm up into the air to marvel the ring on her finger. The Dilamite glistened brightly in the sheen of the fairy lights. Then Jenna took it into her other hand and rubbed it a few times. Now, charged with the thermal energy it started to glow by itself and she quickly wiped away another tear from her cheek as Set reached out his hand to place it over hers, so that the two stones formed a whole again, what made Jenna coo delighted.

For a while they lay next to each other, silent, legs entangled in the other’s, and stared at their rings. Were they engagement rings? Technically spoken yes, but Jenna considered them already married, where the hell would they find a priest anyway? Although…

    “Tork can marry us, officially. On Earth the captain of a ship is allowed to marry people.” She explained to Set, using her language to get the words right and he chuckled. Then he fell silent again and lowered their intertwined hands onto Jenna’s stomach where he gently stroked her skin, lost in thoughts.

    “Jenna?” he began quietly and she heard something in his voice that made her raise her look to his face, concerned.

    “Yeah?” she asked and squeezed his hand on her stomach. He was frowning slightly but still looked down on their joined hands.

    “I… I somehow feel… strange, as if there’s something more I have to do.”

She could sense how hard it was for him to put into words what he was experiencing, so it had to be a new emotion.

    “What do you have to do? Is there something I can do to help?” she offered and he glanced down at her.

    “I know it sounds crazy, really, but… I somehow would like to have… a child with you. We belong together, so isn’t it… normal to want something that’s like us? You and me?” He sounded so miserable that she almost broke out into tears again and she pulled on his shoulder until he rolled onto his side and she could catch his face in her hands and kiss him.

    “Oh Baby… Set it’s great that you feel that way and I would love to have a child with you, too, our own little one… but it’s impossible. Biologically, I mean. You’re sterile and even if you weren’t…” she remembered suddenly how absolutely horrified Nemon had reacted when he found out that she was sleeping with Set, not knowing whether or not the Irken was sterile. “I don’t think we would _want_ something to form out of our cells without knowing what might happen.” It was a harsh reality but he needed to understand it.

Set nodded against her chest and heaved a disappointed sigh. To take his mind off things, Jenna decided to change the subject and nudged him gently until he looked up to her.

    “You didn’t tell me where we’re going to spend our honeymoon.” She said smiling and his expression brightened all of a sudden. He grabbed the datapad still lying on the bed and activated it. Again, Jenna’s mouth stood open speechlessly.

There were images of an alien planet, no doubt. But what she was looking at was indeed a long, white sand beach under a blue sky and brightly turquoise water. It was so blue that it could only be water! That or a caustic acid.

She took an excited breath but Set was quicker: “I found a planet that A: has real water and B: a tropical climate just like you wanted. The only thing it doesn’t have is a house, but it’s uninhabited so we won’t exactly need a house.” He grinned and had to duck away as she was already about to smother him with kisses again.

    “It’s beautiful Set.” She sighed enraptured and then giggled: “Oh, my bad – husband.”

The Irken shot her an irritated glare.

    “What did you call me?” he wanted to know, slightly ruffled and she started snorting with laughter.

    “That’s what you call the man you married, on Earth, silly.” She chortled on and squeaked when he rolled on top of her and growled: “And so what am I supposed to call you then, hm?”

    “Wife.” She answered quietly and saw the way he smiled.

    “My wife. I like it.”

    “I love you, Set.”

A moment of hesitation. “I love you more.”

    “Jesus!”

    “ _What_ did you call me?!”

Jenna laughed. After a second Set joined her.         

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had so much fun writing this chapter!! And actually it was supposed to be wayyy longer, ending in a nasty cliffhanger but I figured I'll save that for the next chapter and let you have something nice for once ♥♥♥ again, thank you guys so much for the feedback and the support lately, I love getting your thoughts on this story (you know who tf you are ou beautiful babes you!!) 
> 
> Probably will have the next chapter out this week on Sunday, I'm on vacation and hanging out/occupying my parent's house!! You guys have a great week, love you!


	107. Attack - Pt. 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [C U R I O S I T Y Twitter](https://twitter.com/CURIOSITYupdate)   
>  [C U R I O S I T Y playlists on Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/user/thetruemek)

###  **-  33 Attack –**

**  
Part 4  
**

  
  
They stayed in bed for a few more hours; kissed and talked about their future honeymoon, although Set pointed out that it would be completely fine by him if Jenna wanted to spend a few weeks on Earth instead, but she just shook her head and clung to his chest. The imagination of getting only a few light-years too close to Earth was… frightening her. She couldn’t get back, not yet.

But at one point the time until the attack grew short, and Jenna too impatient. She wanted to show her ring to Car and Reliat, hell, the entire crew if she would have the chance! But above all she wanted to see them all one more time, hug them and say goodbye internally. Not that she was planning on submitting to the _Hive_ again, she just didn’t want to leave any loose ends behind, just in case.

    “Though I think it’d be better if we left them here. The rings, I mean.” She considered as she pulled the open overall over her shoulders and wrapped the heavy belt around her hips, before turning the glowing crystal on her finger back and forth. Set looked at her in surprise from his spot on the bed where he was still lying with his arms crossed behind his head, antennae pricked up scandalized. But before Jenna had the chance to explain herself, he understood himself and nodded thoughtfully while examining his part of the Dilamite crystal now.

    “You’re right. I’d feel incredibly stupid about myself if punched out the Tallest’s teeth with it and break it in the process.” He finally said and grinned wickedly what made Jenna laugh out.

    “Look at you. If I didn’t know any better I’d say you’re actually looking forward to this.”

He gave her an affirming nod and stood up to carefully stash the ring between Jenna’s belongings inside her backpack, leaning in a corner of the small room, checking three times that the side pocket was closed properly.

    “Oh you better bet on it. I can’t wait to have those two bastards in my grip and…” the rest of his sentence was drowned out by an inarticulate growl as he closed his big, metal hand around an invisible throat and clenched it so hard that she could hear the titanium of his prosthesis crunch. Jenna stepped up to him, wrapped her arms around his neck from behind and bent over his shoulder to kiss his neck. When he was kneeling like that he was almost already on eye level with her.

Set’s hand relaxed immediately and slipped over hers to pet her. The Pak was humming quietly beneath her naked breasts, the vibrations tickling her slightly.

     “I’m gonna go look for Car. She’s probably already waiting for me to show her the ring. Are you going to stay here for longer or are you off to the hangar yourself?” she asked, her voice a dark purring and Set had to collect all his self-control to not throw her onto the bed yet again and quickly peal her out of her suit. He had no idea if he would ever get used to this, to what her mere closeness, the soft melodies of her voice and the heat of her body did to his sharp senses. In secrecy he was hoping that this would never happen.

The Irken nodded upon standing up and turned around to face her. Now he was towering her again and she was forced to lay her head way back. Jenna snorted amused: “What? Yes, you’re gonna stay here or yes, you’re off to the hangar?” And as if she had read his thoughts from just now she playfully bit his bare stomach, nipping the soft skin right beneath his sixpack. His Squeedlyspooch felt as if it was twisting around itself!

Set hissed startled and tried to writhe out of her arms but Jenna just grinned and kept mistreating him with small teeth while clutching his thighs and keeping him in place, until he had enough and simply picked her up to get to her neck and suck a big hickey to her skin what made her squeal in protest.

    “It was more of a: yes, you better leave before I do stars-know-what to you, got it?” he rumbled against her jaw and let his long, thin tongue dance over the fresh bruise.

    “Mmmh,” Jenna did and massaged the big muscles of his shoulders, “then I’d better hurry and go before I get eaten up by such a big, strong alien.” Again her voice was pure temptation but Set just let her slip out of his arms and pushed her towards the door by her shoulders, ignoring her pearling laughter just as the painful throbbing in his groin.

    “Get out you crazy human.” He grunted and opened the door with a punch on the panel next to it. Jenna shrieked shocked when she was shoved out into the hallway and fought with the fastener of her overall to pull it all the way up before she turned around, a pout on her lips. _He_ had no issue with leaning naked against the doorframe like the personified Adonis statue and eying her with a sassy grin. “I see you around.” Now it was his turn to purr. Then his face relaxed and he picked her up once more to kiss her. “See you in the hangar, wifey.”

Jenna smiled merrily, her heart was literally jumping from joy and for a moment her happiness was too perfect for fear and uncertainty to bring her down again.

    “Later. I love you, babe.” She replied and kissed the point where she had her nose. Then she jumped out of his arms and ran back towards the MedBay while typing away on her Chronometer to give Car a heads-up that she was on her way.

 

She found Car with Reliat in the MedBay which was still much busier than the rest of the ship. A few moments ago a computer generated voice had started to announce the first call-ups and reminded all combat effective units how much time remained until the roll call. Jenna had almost two full hours left until she and Set had to report to Tork and thus enough time to first go visit the aliens she perhaps wouldn’t see again after those few hours.

    “Holyshitfuckingspirits!” was Car’s gasped out curse when she saw the ring on Jenna’s finger. And even Reliat’s four eyes were all but popping out of his head as he bent closer over Jenna’s hand. His girlfriend clawed into the white fabric of his lab coat and she seemed on the brink of shaking him. Her eyes shot from the ring up to Jenna and down again, her mouth a voiceless scream that would turn into a girlish shrieking attack if she was reading the signs right.

And indeed, Car squealed out loud not a heartbeat later and grabbed Jenna’s hand. She was giggling just as stupidly herself, jumping up and down on the spot, clutching Car’s hands and grinning at her.

Reliat took a precautionary step back but once the two young women had calmed down again he approached Jenna and hugged her.

    “Congratulations, Jenna! And to Set, too, of course!” The heartfelt joy in his voice made her beam back at him and she hugged him tightly.

    “Aw, thanks Reliat! I still can’t really believe it.” She admitted and then looked at Car with a shake of her head. “I gotta say I’m surprised you didn’t trumpet it out before he had the chance.” She ragged her friend and Car rubbed her horns sheepishly.

    “Hmm, wasn’t all that voluntarily. Your Irken _did_ have to threaten me otherwise the entire crew would’ve known by now.” She confessed and laughed when she saw Jenna’s shocked face. “Hey I’m just messing with you! But it was too cute to see him act all self-conscious and wanting to impress you. How was it!?”

Of course Jenna had to tell them in every little detail what Set had prepared for her, though she left the nasty bits out. Already bad enough that Reliat was forced to catch up to Set’s proposal now; Car didn’t have to know that her Irken was the perfect lover as well.

There were a few tears when she said her farewell to the two of them. Mostly Car’s and hers but even the stout Ilenian had wet eyes as Jenna turned around and left the MedBay. For a moment she stood outside and took a second to think. Who was next?

Since she had no idea where Jak was at right now, she decided to first pay Trook a visit and thank him for the ring. On her way to his quarter/workshop she met a few other aliens. Sadly none of them were from the _Rebellion_ but she still gave each of them a nod and a smile, trying to project some of that luck she was said to have onto them, though she wondered if that impulse came purely from her transcendental experiences with the Pakrit. She wanted so badly to be able to save them all, hoping, _praying_ that none of them would die.

Luckily she soon arrived at Trook’s and didn’t bother with knocking at the door that opened the second she was standing in front of it. No doubt the smart tinkerer had brought his security cameras along and had covered them in a layer of his patented _Hallucinum_ * to make them invisible.

Jenna stepped inside and was immediately greeted by Trook, who quickly pulled off his working gloves and wiped his soot-smudged face with the back of his hand before he hugged her.

    “Jenna, good to see you!” He returned her smile and gestured at her to activate her suit. She rolled her eyes, yet still smiling and complied, cautious to first take off her ring so it wouldn’t get crushed by her armoured gloves. _Void_ shot out of the belt and embraced her body in its usual, smooth way like a second, heavier skin.

    “Trook, you already checked it after the training yesterday.” She reminded him indulgently and saw the Vortian incline his head apologetic as he already fidgeted with the weapon retainer at the lower end of her back-plating.

    “I know, I know, kiddo, I just wanted to… ah yes, mhm, I thought so.” Trook mumbled, suddenly lost in thoughts and walked over to a workbench, typing on one of the many Chronometers he had slung around his wrist. He opened a weapons crate standing on the workbench and took something out, already reaching for a bunch of tools. Jenna let him tinker in peace, examining the beautiful crystal ring in her hand and experiencing the feeling of pure joy all over again.

    “Thanks for the ring, by the way. It’s amazing.” She said and heard him laugh.

    “I’m glad you like it. I was completely flabbergasted when Set said he wanted to propose to you with it. Why the hell would he need rings for that, I asked him. You humans really are a curious bunch.” He chuckled and turned back around to her, hiding something behind his back. Jenna cocked her head to the side, curious.

    “In many early cultures the couple to be married would get tied together by their wrists with a ribbon to show that nothing would be able to separate them. The rings are a symbolic remnant of this tradition.” She explained and palmed over the silver ring of the Resistance across her chestplate. Trook nodded in understanding.

    “Makes sense to me. Well, then I hope that your kind has the tradition of gifting on a wedding as well.” With that he pulled forth what he had been hiding behind his back and Jenna took a surprised gasp for air.

It was a handgun, just like the one Tork had given her on her first training at the _Rebellion_ ’s shooting range and that Jenna had immediately fallen in love with. The elliptical barrel opened into some sort of glove at the end of the gun, hiding the butt and the trigger inside so that the weapon looked like a futuristic extension of her arm with a glowing muzzle. Instead of being white like Tork’s practice gun this one was just as black as her suit and the long back of the weapon was freshly notched, making it look like it would fit perfectly into the retainer on her back.

Jenna stared at Tork, stunned, and carefully took the gun from him.

     “This is… wow, Trook, how did you know-?”

He snorted amused and answered her unspoken question: “My brother still remembers exactöy how excited you were about that model back then and, I’m gonna be honest with you: he said you had the best aim with this one.” Now Jenna laughed as well.

    “Ha, barely.” But she couldn’t deny that the weight of the pistol and its unique design felt incredibly familiar and right to her. Trook winked at her and then pointed at some flat buttons around the casing.

    “I thought you might say something like that, which is why I built in some nice gimmicks.”

 _Why am I not surprised by that_ , Jenna thought, smiling, and let Trook show her those gimmicks.

 

 

 

 _1 hour later – 137 days and 12 hours since abduction - 25 Ti before ultimatum deadline –_ Vengeance _main hangar_

 

When Jenna stepped into the hangar, after a quick detour to her quarter to stash her ring, the last preparations before the attack were in full swing. The vast room was almost bursting at its seams; it seemed like the entire army of the Resistance was gathered here, or at least the rest that was left after the countless assaults from the armada. She took a quick step to the side to let a group of pilots pass her that came running through the gate behind her and leaned back against the metal wall, overwhelmed.

The main hangar of the _Vengeance_ was located in the lowest part of the ship, right in the middle. Up front and in the back was a big exit gate, granting access to the rest of the warship. The two long sides could be opened simultaneously to allow the swarm of fighters to take off. Other than on the _Rebellion_ which had been more of a recon spacecraft rather than a purebred warship there was no isolated launchpad on the _Vengeance_ , just those two big gates, shielded off against space with energy barriers the same way she had seen back on Set’s old ship after the Prerk had bombed a hole onto the hull.

Jenna tried to make out Set or Zar in the crowd but in the almost two miles long room it was hard to recognize anyone between the countless jets. She took her Chronometer and was about to ping Set when a big metal hand sank onto her shoulder and she looked up in start. The Steelhunter in front of her gave her an acknowledging nod and she needed a second before she recognized him.

    “Quor!” she called out over the noise and squeezed the hand on her shoulder. The half synthetic being had belonged to Feorn’s pilot squad and hadn’t believed her, back when she had told them about Ria and how she’d saved her life. She hadn’t seen him since their talk in the mess hall on the moon, where he had told her about the Bloodbath Set had caused in his wrath. The Steelhunter probably had been too busy with his own obligations being a fighter pilot.

    “So you’re still alive after all.” He commented and the red lights of his armor gleamed slightly. Unfortunately she didn’t know enough about his species to know what this meant. “I already thought the Lieutenant Commander had killed you after all. But then we would be trying to get the hell outta here and not mobilize.”

She pulled a face and wished she still had her ring with her as she replied: “You know, actually, he asked me if I’d marry him a few hours ago. So, yeah, sorry to disappoint you.”

Quor tilted his head with a popping sound and the lights in his optics flared up briefly.

    “No shit? Huh, so your species has similar mating rituals as the Vortians? Interesting.”

Then he fell silent and looked over his shoulder to watch the bustling rebels. “What do you think would _he_ be doing right now?”

From his voice and the darkening of his biolights Jenna recognized that he was sad and knew there was only one person that could grieve the Steelhunter like that.

    “He would most likely be out there and scout out the situation…” she replied quietly and felt a similar, familiar melancholy rise inside of her. “Or throw homemade incendiary bombs at the Tallest themselves.” She couldn’t help but snicker. Quor turned back towards her and chuckled quietly to himself as well, a crunching noise.

    “Damn right he would. Feorn never was a particularly serious kind of guy right before a fight. Come to think of it, he never was serious at all. We… we all miss him, still.” He muttered and a hissing sigh escaped his hefty metal body. Jenna nodded silently.

    “Me too.” But at least thinking of him didn’t hurt as much anymore as it had before. “Have you seen Jak anywhere? The scrawny Vortian with the scars Tork brought back from the _Massive_?” she asked to change the subject. The Steelhunter pondered briefly and then pointed at one of the bigger jets, like the type Set was now calling his own.

    “He’s probably already with his pilot. Volunteered to operate the cannon of one of Commander Gorn’s own crew who’s lost his gunner during the last attack of the Irkens. Tough little guy.”

    “Thanks, Quor. Let’s do this for Feorn.” Jenna lifted a fist and the Steelhunter bumped his metal knuckles against her gloves.

    “For Feorn, human.”

    “And good luck to you out there.” She added solemnly before trotting towards the jet but Quor called out after her: “We have all the luck we would ever need with you back in the game, lucky charm!” And there it was again, her loathed nickname.

Jak was already waving at her from afar before she was even close enough to greet him and closed a hatch on the big jet. Chuckling, he pulled her into his arms and mussed her short hair with one scarred hand.

    “Eh, so yer finally here to give yer ol’ pal a smooch fer good luck, love?” he cackled hoarse when she punched his side and writhed out of his scrawny arms.

    “Ugh, you’re gross. And stop it with the lucky-charm-bullshit. As far as I know myself I’m gonna trip over my own damn feet and shoot myself in the process.” She retorted but grinned widely.

The Vortian snickered and shrugged.

    “Who knows, might well be the tall buggers laugh themselves ta death. I know I would.”

She stuck out her tongue and raised her hands defensively when he leaned over and made distinct kissing noises.

    “You know you should be carefully with that, I’m a married woman now!” she warned him and his yellow eyes widened. Then he wheeled around and stared at someone with a disbelieving grin on his face. Jenna followed his glare and saw Set’s armor glint in the distance. Her heart did another leap.

   “Well I’ll be…” Jak growled, played angry and shook his head. “Welp, seems like ya need all yer luck yerself with that one.” He giggled again and then scrutinized her sharply. “Ya watch yerself down there, ya hear me? It’s their territory, their darn playgroun’ an’ ya ain’t seen the whole range o’ their horrors, kiddo.”

She gave him an earnest nod in return and hugged him once more, pleading: “Only if you promise me to watch yourself, too, alright? If everything goes as planned they won’t terrorize anyone ever again, Jak, I’ll make sure of that.”

    “I’m proud of ya. An’ Ria prolly would’ve done everythin’ to see ya standin’ here now.” He rasped into her ear and she had to swallow down her sorrow. _For Ria and Feorn_ … she said to herself and let go of Jak to finally walk over to Set and their team.

As she walked past one of the black lacquered jets, something dissolved from the shadows beneath it and took on a tall figure that casually strode along beside her. She grinned up at the Zar’tak.

    _“I believe congratulations are in order.”_ He said inside her head before she had time to greet him. _“At least I think they are, if you can trust Car’s thoughts.”_

Now Jenna laughed and bumped him with her elbow.

    “Lemme guess, you can read her thoughts even better than mine because she was the first person you actually had a mental contact with, right?”

    _“No. But she’s been screaming it out, literally – I could hear them from halfway across the ship! And I could barely focus on your thoughts.”_ He replied, as Jenna thought, a tad irritated.

    “I told you not to read my thoughts!” she chided him and he flinched, caught.

    _“Pure… habit. Forgive me.”_ He probably would have added something more but in that moment Set spotted her and approached them, his antennae twitching excited. SIR was following on his master’s heel as always. Jenna felt a sting when she saw the piece of metal still welded over the hole in his chest and she quickly raised her eyes back up to Set.

     “Good, you’re here. Then we’re complete.” He greeted them and lifted a hand to cup her face and run his thumb over her cheek. Suddenly Nemon appeared out of nowhere, edged around him and embraced Jenna tightly.

    “Jenna, Set just told me the good news, congratulations!” His stormy affection caught her off guard and she returned the hug after she had caught herself again.

    “T- thanks Nemon! I’m so glad you’re coming with us!” she stammered, being more worried than glad to be honest, and noticed how he shook his head.

    “I just have to be there… if something happens to you again…” he cleared his throat hoarsely and pressed a palm to the bare part of her neck what was pure habit as well, making sure she was alright. “After all we’ve been through… I couldn’t take it, not being around you when something goes wrong. You’re still my patient and my student; I have a responsibility towards you.” The old Ilenian smiled fatherly and hugged her again. Jenna tried to ignore the suppressed rumbling that seemed to emit Set’s chest.

 

    “Pilots, to your fighters, go, go, go! Support units and medical staff stand by – stealth team: give me a status report!” The Captain bellowed effortlessly over the general noise. The old, scarred Vortian was standing on the catwalk circling the entire hangar and observed the last-minute arrangements before he would head up to the Command Bridge of the _Vengeance_ himself to lead the attack. With the first Commander and his SIC, Set, in the stealth team on Irk he now held the supreme command over the entire Resistance fleet.

Tork jumped off the transporter’s roof he had been working on with a tech and gave the Captain a casual wave back.

    “Stop yelling like that you old fart, not everyone down here is deaf!” he called back and whistled piercingly through his teeth. Jenna started from the thoughts that had kept her gaze locked on Irk beneath them and she trotted along after the rest of the stealth team to line up with them in three lines in front of the transporter, parked right next to the launch gate. She was standing in the first row, flanked by the Zar’tak and Set, who both had immediately taken the places next to her seemingly perchance, but she knew what was up. She shot them a quick glance and was still somewhat puzzled about the strange chest-piece Zar was wearing, but then Tork turned around and had them enumerate.

    “Stealth-team ready and all accounted for. And we could use some more fuel.” Tork informed Commander Gorn finally once they were done and he nodded contented.

    “Alright stealth-team: check your equipment and then board the transporter. Wait for your signal! In a few moments we should have contact with the Prerk queen and her hive. Let’s go people.”

Tork returned the nod and turned his attention back on the team. He had donned his armor as well and apparently taken his time to spruce it up a little: the silver ring of the Resistance decorated his chest plate just like it did on Jenna’s armor and she realized surprised that he wasn’t the only one who had adapted the style. No matter where she looked, the rebels had taken her cue and either drawn the silver ring on their chests or sprayed or even welded it to the metal of their armor. The symbol united them, joined them together despite their differences. And woe betide anyone that would try to separate them.

    “You heard the Captain, check your equipment, safeguard your weapons and then off with you!” Tork ordered them and called Ink and Ironhead towards him, sticking heads together with them immediately. Jenna’s view was suddenly blocked out by Zar who started inspecting her armor and check the circuitry of her suit. Astonished, she watched him run his outstretched hands over her armor, an inch above the black material, closing one pair of his eyes. Apparently he was using his own electromagnetic energy to check on her suit.

Set didn’t seem to have anything against it for a change; he had made it his own task to personally supervise the rest of the team checking their equipment and weapons. She looked back up to Zar who had opened the lid on her left upper arm now and gave the emergency Pakrit syringe a scrutinizing tap.

    “What are you wearing there?” she asked under her breath and he opened his jaws into a short, snake like grin.

    _“A piece of protective armor, just like you. What did you think it was?”_ he answered indulgently inside her head, and her head alone judging by the lack of static noise, lowered his hands again and took a step back, clearly contented with the state of her battle suit. Jenna cocked a brow, skeptical.

    “What do _you_ need armor for? I thought you could stop projectiles with your mind.” She chased it up and now he showed teeth as he grinned openly.

    _“So that little Vortians disguised as little humans can’t fry me with an EMP grenade again and make my powers completely useless.”_ He hissed back and she thought hearing something like a silent reproach in his answer. Jenna chuckled quietly and looked down to the ground when she remembered. Or rather recalled what Car had told her afterwards, when she had been lying in Nemon’s wing of the MedBay, muted, a big neck brace around her throat and covered in hundred layers of bandages.

    “Oh, right. You got a point there.” She admitted and pointed at the cap on his head, connected to the back of his armor with two thick cables. “Okay, let me guess:”, she let her hand travel over the black carapace and felt the static even through her own suit. No, not really static. More like a mix of static and a strong electromagnetic current. “The armor is connected to a strong, meekrobian energy cell and works like a barrier, shielding your system against enemy electromagnetic pulses or, if my first theory is wrong, supplies you quickly with energy _after_ such an attack.”

Satisfied, she watched the green eyes widen and he stared at her surprised, almost shocked.

    _“Tork told you not to take the Pakrit yet!”_ he said astonished inside her head and Jenna laughed out loud, making some of the other rebels turn their heads in confusion.

    “Hey, if I had I would already know what the hell this thing can do and not just venture a guess, Zar. No, I think by now I’ve lived long enough among aliens and their technology for my way of thinking to adjust to it. I know how _you_ work.” She explained and bumped his arm good-naturedly.

    “Okay kids, enough small talk, it’s time! Board the shuttle at the double and buckle up!” Tork suddenly barked in his Commander voice and Jenna waited patiently but also excited for the rearguard of their team, and Nemon, to disappear inside the transporter. Set, Zar and she would be at the front line since Set had SIR with him as a scout, which was why they would take the seats closest to the tailgate.

The Zar’tak closed the hatch on her upper arm and checked the fit of her gun on her lower back.

    _“You’re nervous. Don’t be afraid.”_ He calmed her and patted her shoulder. _“You won’t be alone down there.”_

    “I’m not afraid.” Jenna denied, shaking her head, but then Set was by her side and waved Zar along to have a few more seconds alone with her in which he bent closely over her to look her in the eyes. The glare out of his crimson, slightly narrowed eyes was like an elixir that gave her strength, a whole other form of Pakrit. Her own, personal drug.

    “You gonna be okay?” he asked her, honestly concerned but also sternly. Jenna nodded determined and exhaled.

    “Let’s do this.” She just said and followed him into the shuttle.

   
  


In their tower, Red was staring out the observation window, up towards the moon he would have destroyed in exactly 24 Ti from now. He could barely make out the moon between all those Spittle Runners, Shuvvers and the few big Viral Tanks of the armada. But he knew it was still there, floating right above the capital and soon enough it would only be a cloud of ashes and moon rocks.

Behind him Purple was watching the next shift of guards taking over and picked his teeth with a thin fingertip. While his hatch twin was trembling in anticipation he was exuding an almost languid calmness. Purple sighed bored.

One of the Spittle Runners exploded in the sky.

Red blinked, stunned. Had he only imagined it? His overstrained eyes played a trick on him? But then the transporter next to it went up in a burst of flames and sluggishly sank down from its position. His eyes raced haunted across the pink sky, trying to find the threat and only when he remembered to use his Pak he saw the attacker. Or rather, the attackers.

    “What the-“, the rest of his curse was swallowed by a mighty explosion that shook the tower itself. Purple yelled in surprise and almost fell off the couch he had been lounging on. Red didn’t hear him however. Neither did he hear the startled shouts of the guards and techs all around him who immediately requested the armada’s status; he only had eyes for the giant nest of the Prerk almost as big as the moon it had been hiding behind mere moments ago. And the smaller warship next to it, spilling hundreds of jets out of its hulk that were heading straight towards them!

    “M- my Tallest, Sir!” one of the techs called out from his control unit. “We’re under attack! The rebels, Sir, they’re attacking the capital!”

    “I’m well aware of that you witless worm!” Red roared over the din of another explosion merely a few megasik* away from them and wheeled around to the techs. “Why the hell are you still sitting there, order a counterstrike this instant! Or I will personally tear you to pieces!”

    “Mobilize the antimatter-mortars! Pick them from the sky!” Purple added bellowing, now just as alarmed as his twin and logged into the tower’s main computer himself to initiate the red alert.

Suddenly a glaringly bright light blinded them, so bright that even their shadows vanished. Red jerked his arm protectively over his face and only the fact that he and Purple were floating prevented that the following shockwave threw them off their feet.

    “What in the name of Irk was _that_!?” he demanded to know, his own scream only sounding muffled through the ringing numbing his antennae. Purple just pointed out the cracked window with one hand. Red squinted his eyes against the blazing light of the explosion. The rebels had taken out one of the planetary antimatter canons.

    “Shit…” he cursed now after all.

   
  


   “Here we go, kids!” Tork hollered and ordered the pilot to close the tailgate. All other jets and fighters had already left the _Vengeance_ that had now turned towards the planet so they couldn’t see what was going on outside anymore. With a jerk the transporter lifted off and Jenna involuntarily clenched her hands around the safety bar pressing her into her seat. Thanks to Trook’s ingenuity their shuttle now had a nearly 300° degree view without affecting the armoring of their vessel. This way they could watch out for the maneuvers of the Irken fighters Set had warned them about.

The pilot turned the transporter around and quickly accelerated it to its top speed, making it corkscrew away underneath the _Vengeance_. Almost instantly they were caught in the middle of a wild fight, lasershots and plasmabeams shooting away over and around them.

    “The queen says they’re in position. Her nest is already under heavy fire, we should better get a move on.” Set announced and retracted the communicator back into his Pak.

    _“I can feel her. Her song is really strong; we’re almost invisible to enemy radars.”_ Zar told them right afterwards, his eyes all closed, listening intently to what was going on around them. Tork nodded and gave them the go ahead to unfasten the safety bars. At Jenna’s startled glance he just grinned crookedly.

    “Just in case we need to exit fast.”

At breakneck speed the black transporter raced through the clouds of fighting jets, Runners and cruisers, diving away under the sickening chaos of shots fired. The bigger ships of the armada still hadn’t joined the fight, apparently Tork’s strategy to use the guard’s relief had worked out after all and the Irkens were still too shocked to react quickly. Most of the planetary mortars had been taken out by their jets as well, but now the big Viral Tanks, the biggest ships among the armada next to the destroyed _Massive_ itself, entered the fight and slowly turned around to face the _Vengeance_ that was fortunately still bigger than all of them.

Jenna watched one of the bigger Resistance jets getting simply vaporized by an ion torpedo from the main gun of a Viral Tank, and prayed that it hadn’t been Jak’s.

But then her attention was drawn back to the front: the planet was closing in faster and faster and suddenly they were behind the blockade of Irken ships! She held her breath. The transporter started to tremble slightly when they entered the thin atmosphere.

    “Closing in on landing point. Landing area clear.” The Vortian pilot informed them, his voice taught and she could almost feel a wave of relief wash over all of them. They had made it this far behind enemy lines!

Then an explosion tore the transporter apart. Jenna had no time to comprehend how it happened; one second she was looking at Tork, the next he was engulfed by a fireball that raced towards her and threw her off her seat. And she fell.    

 

 

 

* Hallucinum:  See chapter 25: Hunters and Prey; nano-tech material that produces a hologram once connected to a computer.

* Megasik: Irken Mile, approx. 1.6 Earth-Miles

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ooooops, here's that cliffhanger I mentioned last chapter 8D feel free to shoot me guys I have no ragrats!! Man this chapter went down fast, lemme tell ya! I'm taking bets for the next one, who survived? Or is this the end? who knows, I'm pretty loopy and sleep-deprived so pls let me know if you spot any typos I overlooked because they make me cringe :C ♥♥♥


	108. Behind Enemy Lines

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [C U R I O S I T Y Twitter](https://twitter.com/CURIOSITYupdate)   
>  [C U R I O S I T Y playlists on Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/user/thetruemek)

###  **\- 34 Behind Enemy Lines –**

_Irk_

When Jenna came to again she thought for a horrible second she had only dreamt that the shuttle exploded since the sensation of falling shook her back into reality. But as she opened her eyes the very same moment, she cried out in start and pulled her arms in front of her face to block out the knifing wind that was ripping the literal breath from her lips. Jerked by the flouncing motion, she was suddenly spun around onto her back and felt the fall wind pulling on her hair.

Now Jenna was tumbling uncontrolled through the air, her stomach leaping into her throat from both fear, and the vertigo of falling miles through the sky, and she tried instinctively to get her balance back and stabilize herself to fall slower. She forced her aching eyes open again and was paralyzed by the sight, an infernal chaos of explosions and blurred silhouettes darting through the pink sky above her. A burning, smoking piece of debris as big as a car swept down right next to her and almost grazed her arm. The heat it gave off was strong enough to burn her frozen face and tore her from the shocked state of paralysis once more. Jenna screamed alarmed, realizing that she had cheated death by the skin of her teeth just now and her heart was beating so painfully it seemed to have already jumped out of her chest.

The slipstream created by the debris turned her back around and now Jenna had to pinch her eyes against the wind again. But at least she wasn’t spinning like crazy anymore. Instead the red, metallically flashing surface of Irk was still racing at her fast!

 _Shit_ , Jenna thought, over and over. There really wasn’t much else she would have been able to do anyway in this situation. She had no parachute or something similar, at least Trook hadn’t shown her one he had installed inside her suit.

_Shit, shit, shi-_

That’s when she suddenly remembered the emergency-Pakrit syringe hidden inside her upper arm plating and she already tried to make a desperate grasp for it. But when she pulled in her outstretched arm she started tumbling again and was forced to regain her balance. Yet it didn’t really matter if she was spinning around uncontrolled, the second she activated the Pakrit she would be able to hover anyway! Probably. She wasn’t entirely sure about it but Jenna just hoped that the life threatening situation would be enough motivation for her brain to figure out how to do it right!

By now she had fallen so far that she was already able to make out individual buildings and she involuntarily wondered if her body would shatter, ironically, right on the Tallest Tower itself.

Determined not to let that happen, she reached for her left arm and grabbed it while her body seemed to fall even faster, like a stone, from the sky. But before her shaking fingers had time to open the hatch of the emergency syringe, another piece of debris hit her right in the back and she inhaled sharply to brace for the horrible pain of getting torn in two. It didn’t come, though. Instead, two arms wrapped around her middle and held on to her.

    “I got you!” Set yelled next to her ear over the howling wind and Jenna could only give back a choked sound of relief. She heard a whirring and clicking behind them and then Set started the thruster engines of his Pak, breaking their fall into a slight arch that moved them forward and carried them quickly down towards the buildings and the smoke. Like a wing-suit pilot, Set maneuvered skillfully around the falling debris, ships and laser shots towards a high, domed structure, using their initial momentum to save his thrusters’ fuel until they were close enough, before he pushed them to full throttle, directing their stream down to right himself up and land almost elegantly on the wide ledge running around the giant dome.

    “It’s okay, Jenna, I got you. Shit. I got you.” He panted again, strained, and clutched her to his chest but she didn’t stir. Jenna had slumped in his arms the second they had arrived on solid ground. Alarmed he turned her around and held his face against her lips, holding his breath until he felt hers on his skin and he relaxed with an exhale. She was just unconscious.

Quickly Set carried her into the sheltered part of the dome facing away from the rain of fire and carefully laid her down, folding the visor of his helmet up to check her swiftly but thoroughly. When he didn’t find anything severe right away he deactivated her suit to look for injuries that might have gotten through the armor.

Her face had suffered a few nasty burn blisters from the explosion of their transporter and the icy cold of Irk’s upper atmosphere but those weren’t life threatening and she didn’t seem to have hurt herself seriously apart from that. As gently as he could the Irken lifted her eyelids a little and felt an unpleasant sting in his guts when he saw the white of her eyes reddened from countless burst arteries. Set exhaled hard and sat back on the heels of his boots, his right hand slowly rubbing over his mouth, assessing the situation. They had survived the explosion. But if he had spotted her only a few seconds later among the debris…

Before him Jenna twitched and her eyelids flickered. Immediately Set pushed his metal hand under her nape to support her and raise her up slowly while she came to again, opening her bloodshot eyes in sudden realization. He grabbed her hand that tried to clutch the collar of his armor.

     “Set, what… we- we were shot down, right? No… no, oh god, fu- _Set_!” she suddenly gasped out, full of pain and he flinched in start when she shot upright and doubled up. Had he missed an injury after all?

    “What?!” he asked hectic and she looked up to him, frantic, tears drawing bright streaks through the black soot on her cheeks. She clasped a hand over her mouth.

    “Tork… Zar, _Nemon_ , they- they’re all… oh god, I think I’m gonna throw up.” She hissed in a fit of panic and he caught her in his arms, pulling her carefully but firmly against his armored chest. Jenna started to tremble violently, her shoulders tensing up as she tried to get her rebelling stomach back under control.

    “Shhh, I know.” Set murmured quietly and gently rubbed the back of her head. But then she suddenly fought his embrace and stood up, staggering. With a start he jumped on his feet as well and reached out for her, ready to catch her should she fall or loose her consciousness again.

    “We have- we have to _find_ them!” Jenna called out and already stumbled along the ledge around the dome, shielding her eyes from the light to look for the destroyed transporter, Set hot on her heels and always wary, though he made no real effort to stop her. When she had circled the dome once, however, she stopped on her own and slouched helplessly. Set stepped up next to her and sympathetically placed a hand on her shoulder to squeeze it slightly.

From up here they could see the full extent of the fight and the destruction. The glistening capitol of the Irken Empire was streaked with columns of smoke where jets, runners, Prerk-ships and transporters had crashed down or where the rebel fighters had taken out the antimatter canons. Over their heads the fight was still raging with the massive nest of the Prerk completely darkening the sky, and the _Vengeance_ herself looked like a dragon breathing fire on thousands of little knights trying to slay it. An already bleeding dragon.

Jenna tore her gaze from the battle and strained her eyes, staring over the vast city.

    “Where… where could they probably have landed?” she asked numbed, while activating her suit, and already reached for the emergency Pakrit reflexively without really noticing it but Set’s hand grabbed hers and he turned her around to face him. His face was dead serious as he shook his head.

    “We can’t go look for them, Jenna. We’ve come too far.” Her fiancé pointed to the right and Jenna followed his hand. Only about five miles away from the building they were currently standing on, the Tallest Tower pierced the sky with its three single spires like a giant Irken hand that was trying to claw at its enemies in the sky and she involuntarily held her breath. But then she whipped back around to him.

    “We can’t just leave them behind!” she protested and frowned when his face hardened. “I know what Tork said, but we _have_ to-“, Set grabbed her shoulders and bent down towards her.

    “Jenna, I am now your commanding officer and you will do what I say, or all of this,” he did a dismissive gesture at the chaos around them, “as well as their sacrifice, would have been for nothing! We both survived - and that was Tork’s goal from the start, to get us to this tower alive – to get _you_ to this tower! So we’re going to see his plan through to the end, do you hear me?”

She returned his glare with stubborn anger and looked for a moment as though she was really contemplating to just take matters into her own hand. But then she just nodded briskly and wiped her cheeks with one hand. In an impulse of grief and thirst for action she wanted, again, to launch the emergency-Pakrit and was stopped once more by Set’s hand, grabbing hers faster than she could even reach the hatch. He raised his other hand to cut her off when she was already drawing breath to rebel again.

    “Not yet. If they haven’t spotted us here yet I doubt they will until we’ve arrived at the Tower. And since the _Hive_ apparently didn’t contact you up to now either he obviously doesn’t know you’re this close yet. But I still believe that the Pakrit is going to blow our cover. You wait for your signal, understood?”

Jenna groaned in frustration and shook off his hand.

    “Yeah, yeah I got it.” She growled and Set nodded. Then he shot a scrutinizing glance down the tall building.

    “Looks like the fastest way down is jumping.” He pondered out loud and didn’t bother to wait for Jenna’s approval before he already grabbed her around her waist again and simply walked off the ledge. Jenna almost choked on her own terrified scream and hid her face against Set’s chest plate when the gross feeling of falling let her stomach summersault back into her throat again. But not a second later she heard the hissing of his thrusters and their fall was gently stopped until Set’s boots hit the ground with a thud.

With one eye still pinched shut Jenna dared to take a look around.

From street level, Irk’s capitol looked like the architect had taken all the sky scrapers of Earth and stretched them even higher before spraying them and everything else, from the street lights to the roads, in pink and red chrome-paint. Thus the city looked less than an actual lively city and more like one giant space station. It looked incredibly cold and desolated, despite the warm colors, probably because there wasn’t a single plant or animal in the streets, not even a fly. Even the old home planet of the Resistance had been more comfy, despite being an actual tundra-planet!

Yet before she had more time to look around, Set had already dropped her on the ground and now pushed her behind his back.

    “Draw your weapon and stay close to me. You only shoot when I shoot, alright?” His voice had become unusually impersonal but she blamed the general situation and Set’s soldier instincts on it, which had undoubtedly already kicked in and would, hopefully, keep her alive until she was finally standing in front of the _Hive._

     “Understood.” She whispered back because in this moment Set raised his flat hand warningly. Even without Tork’s lessons in tactical gestures Jenna would’ve known what he was telling her: _Hold position and keep quiet._

Tensed she listened into the distant roaring of the fight above them, only broken by the closer explosions of jets or falling debris. She didn’t dare to squeeze past Set and take a look down the street in front of them herself.

After a few seconds, that felt like multiple hours to Jenna’s adrenaline-flooded body, Set clicked his tongue and suddenly darted off over the street and into a dark alleyway across from it. Jenna needed a second to realize they were moving out and hurried after him, risking a glance over her shoulder, afraid her dilly-dallying might’ve alerted someone down that street.

An outraged hiss from Set’s direction made her flinch. When she had closed up on him again she shrugged apologetically but even the guilty look on her face wasn’t enough to soften his hardened expression.

    “Don’t you do that again!” he scolded her, his antennae whipping through the air from beneath his helmet. “If you don’t stay right behind me it doesn’t matter if I scouted our way out first or not! Now let’s get moving. Down there is the first sentry tower so keep quiet.“

Jenna swallowed the comment on the tip of her tongue and instead focused on following the ex-invader as closely as possible who made his way through the streets of his former home world, now an enemy to everything he had once fought for so desperately. She couldn’t help the feeling that they were running into a trap.

 

Despite Set’s concerns and Jenna’s bad feeling they made it past the sentry tower without any incidents. As well as the second one. And even those not a block away from the Tallest Tower. Without even a single shot they finally reached a vast square and quickly pressed behind the corner of one of the surrounding skyscrapers.

Now she realized why the sentries hadn’t spotted them the entire way: The Tallest must’ve withdrawn every soldier and the complete number of security forces from within the city to guard the entrance of their Tower. Jenna’s skin was itching beneath her suit and she bumped Set invitingly into his side when her eyes spotted the massive entryway of the Tallest Tower, its arched door standing almost mockingly wide open.

Set gave a frustrated growl.

    “Come on Set. Without Pakrit we’ll never make it through them! I could take them out from here, they wouldn’t notice a thing!  I think we’re close enough now to give it a try.” Jenna breathed excited and was about to feel for the hatch in her arm plating again. With a stifled snarl Set snapped around and grabbed her hand while he pushed her against the wall of the building they had taken cover behind. Aghast, Jenna held her breath and stared into his eyes, stunned that he would lose his temper on her like that.

    “I told you: no. Pakrit.” Set hissed. But he immediately let up on her again, pulling her back to the corner and pointing at the entrance. Or rather next to it. “Do you see those taller, hooded figures right by the door?”

Defiantly she chewed on her lower lip but nodded. She really had overlooked the dozen hood-wearing, masked Irkens at first but now they were literally sticking out of the crowd of soldiers. Also because their illuminated, bright pink and purple armor was adorned by sharp spikes and curved blades on shoulders and elbows that didn’t quite look like they were just for show. Set carried on: “ _Those_ are Enforcers, a special ops unit of the Irken security forces and even more efficient and skilled than elite soldiers. They’re trained to hunt and destroy high ranking invaders like myself and dangerous alien targets posing a direct threat to the Tallest. Zim probably told you about the one sent to kill him on Earth. I could take two of them on myself but not this entire squad.”

     “So now what?!” Jenna demanded to know. “They turned this tower into a fucking fortress! They’re most likely expecting an assault on it anyway, and already know that we’re coming, so why can’t I just-“

     “Jenna don’t you fucking dare! That wasn’t a nice request to pretty _please_ be patient - that was an order and if you disobey that order I _will_ take you out by force and only wake you up again once we’re inside the Tower’s command center, did I make myself clear? No Pakrit until I say so!” Set interrupted her brusque, hissing through clenched teeth and tightening his hands into fists to keep his composure. Jenna took a step away from him, immediately getting his full attention, and furrowed her brows.

    “What the fuck is _wrong_ with you?!” she spat, hurt, struggling to keep her voice lowered. “I get it, we’re both still shaken up from what happened and I know that we’re in serious trouble, but you don’t have to fucking bash me like that, okay? It doesn’t exactly help, you know?!” Jena kept rubbing her wrist where he had grabbed her and which was still throbbing uncomfortably despite her own armor.

The narrowed crimson eyes followed her hands and he flinched guilt-ridden, but his expression didn’t relax at all. If anything, Set’s frown only deepened as he picked up a faint noise and shook his head.

    “Apparently I do have to… you have no idea how bad the situation is, Jenna.” He muttered and adjusted his grip on the rifle in his hands while he peeked around the corner again. Jenna was about to say something, maybe even encourage him, but a thundering noise made her flinch and cower down. It came from multiple heavy combat robots that just arrived from one of the bigger avenues behind the tower. They were similar to the one manned mech she had taken out on Lenka’s space station but Jenna seriously doubted that she would be able to take out twenty of those things, not with all those soldiers and Enforcers in her back.

Slowly she started to understand the gravity of the situation; the vial of emergency Pakrit would never last throughout a fight with this army _and_ keep her fueled to confront both the Tallest and the _Hive_ , a fight she hadn’t even had an idea of how tough it would be in reality. And taking more Pakrit from Set would probably leave him vulnerable to attacks! Jenna suddenly realized that Set was afraid!

She sighed.

    “Okay, fine. _No Pakrit_ , I get it. What’s the plan then?” she relented and Set relaxed visibly against the wall, ejecting a spiderleg with a scanner attached to it, swiveling it over the ground before him.

    “There are other, hidden ways inside… drone tunnels for example…”

Suddenly something put the crowd of Irkens into motion: One of the Enforcers reached up to his helmet, like he was receiving a call, and then gestured imperiously at the soldiers at the bottom of the ramp leading up to the door. Nearly half of the soldiers suddenly began to regroup and move out down the street heading west. The combat bots brought up the rear of the small army and Jenna blinked in confusion when also the majority of the Enforcers suddenly set out, using metal cables from their Paks to pull themselves up to the roofs of the buildings circling the plaza.

    “Hm,” did Set, “well that makes it a _little_ easier for us. And those Enforcers just gave me an idea.” Before Jenna could even ask what he meant by that he had already wrapped his arm around her middle again, lifting her off the ground. With a high pitched scraping the six spider legs shot from his Pak, carrying them lickety-split towards the backside of the building.

    “And how do you plan on getting up there?” Jenna asked when Set stopped for a moment, scrutinizing the mirrored glass frontage of the skyscraper. There were no irregularities in the even surface, no window sills or bracing where Set possibly could have grabbed on to pull himself up. But he just chuckled darkly. The spiderlegs bent down deeply beneath him before they vaulted them almost 30 meters into the air and towards the wall. Jenna’s breath hitched in her throat when she saw her own reflection flying at her, then she heard a high whirring sound and Set was stuck to the glass wall like a fly. Perplexed Jenna looked around, already about to ask him what else he was hiding in that magic Pak of his when she saw that the tips of his spider legs had penetrated the thick glass a little, each leaving a small slit in the material like a knife in butter.

    “The Vortian high frequency blades…” she mumbled as the memory of how Set had cut the window to her own room back on Earth resurfaced in her. But she had no time to marvel his ingenuity; the Irken scaled the glass front with incredible speed, only activating the vibrating blades to cut a tiny hole into the wall for his spiderlegs to hold onto before turning them off meticulously so they wouldn’t slip all the way down again. This way they were at the top of the building in record time and, most importantly, without much noise. Once he was over the ledge of the flat roof, Set retracted his spiderlegs and gestured at Jenna to lie flat on her stomach like he did, crawling towards the other end of the roof facing the plaza.

In the shadow of the narrow wall Set lowered his visor again and took a small scanner from his Pak that he pushed over the edge of the balustrade inch by inch until it was just sticking out over it. The image of the tiny camera was transferred onto the surface of his visor so Jenna was able to follow what Set was seeing.

    “What do you think startled them?” she whispered over the incessant roaring of the explosions and rubbed her face that was still burning and had now started to itch terribly as well. Set shook his head.

    “Hard to tell. Maybe a few Prerk or even a squad of the rebels landed in the city when they realized we’d been shot down. At least they saved us a lot of trouble. We can just hope that the Tallest don’t pick up any of the radio chatter. If they assume that you died in the crash then nothing will stop the armada from obliterating the rest of the rebel fleet.” He answered her, still more focused on the feed of his camera. Jenna felt her jaw slackening.

    “What do you mean?” she chased it up in horror and Set looked her in the eyes.

    “The only reason the _Vengeance_ , the Prerk nest and the moon are still in one piece is that the Tallest and the _Hive_ still think the rebels keep you safe on either of them, so they can’t just blow them up until they’re absolutely sure where you are.” he explained and she swallowed hard.

    “B- but I could easily be on one of the fighters, too!” she argued but Set shook his head.

    “Most Irken runners and jets are equipped with scanning technology that can penetrate the hulls of smaller vessels to analyze the interior. The fighters usually first pursue targets for a while before they shoot them down.” Set said and focused back on his feed.

Jenna thought about what he said and chewed on the inside of her cheek, watching the sky with new worry.

    “Do you think it’s possible Tork and the others caused the Enforcers to leave?” she suddenly blurted out, hoping against hope, but Set just shrugged.

    “If they somehow survived the explosion as well… though I think it’s more likely that we survived because we were the only ones close enough by the tailgate. The fireball was probably sucked out before it could reach us.”

Jenna felt a new wave of sadness and nausea grabbing hold of her and forced herself to take deep breaths. She was still hoping to somehow get a mental call from the Zar’tak any second now, telling her they had survived and were on their way to them, since he had been sitting right across from her. But her head stayed empty.

Suddenly the image on Set’s visor stopped moving around and instead zoomed in on something hidden in the ground right next to one of the supporting pillars in front of the tower.

    “There.” He uttered relieved. “A drone-tunnel ventilation grid. That’s our way in. Or more precisely: yours.” He said and flipped the visor up again to look her sternly in the eyes. Jenna stopped short, raising herself up a bit in confusion and alarm.

    “What do you mean with _my_ way in?”

 

 

_Irk – Tallest Tower – Half an hour later_

 

 

Jenna pressed her back even harder against the paneling of the supporting pillar she had dove behind and tried to keep her hounded breath as quiet as possible but her heart was already pounding so rapidly again that she struggled to get enough oxygen this way.

After a long detour down the office building and through the eastern district of the Tallest Tower complex (on her own!) she had arrived at the back of the giant tower without a hitch. And now, in theory, only had to circle this support pillar to get to the drone-tunnel ventilation grid. But the rest of the Tallest’s private army was still gathered in front of the entrance and wouldn’t move anytime soon and the alert Irkens would spot her the very second she snuck out of the tower’s shadow, what Set had inculcated her with over and over so she wouldn’t dare try to move out before their agreed signal.

So she waited, like a cornered animal, listening closely into the chaotic background noises of the fights over the city and forced herself to not look up. The battle was still raging but by now the armada seemed to have successfully regrouped their ranks to take control of the fight. Jenna clenched her jaws in impotent fury. They had to get into this damn tower, fast! What was taking so long?!

For a second she played with the thought of disobeying Set’s orders and just take the damn Pakrit to fight her way into the Tallest’s hideout or control the guards long enough with her mind until-

Across the plaza the top of the glass fronted building exploded with a vicious force and not a second later another charge went off in the street behind it. Immediately multiple sirens started blaring their warnings in Irken and Jenna held her breath tensed when she heard the soldiers shouting over each other before the remaining Enforcers called them to order and took another half of them to investigate the possible advance of the rebel forces. That was her signal!

While all their eyes were fixed on the burning skyscraper, Jenna switched her armor to full leg-support and vaulted over the three meter high wall of the support pillar. For a terrible moment she was out in the open, her pitch black suit standing out over the pink chrome like a neon sign. But then she shook off her paralysis and ran the few leagues towards the ventilation-grid, embedded into the metal ground. She came to a skittering halt on her knees, already grabbing the bars to jerk on the metal. The grid yielded with a noise that sounded way too loud and shrill even in Jenna’s ears but now it was already too late to be careful. She tore the grid from its bracing, revealing the way into the narrow, dark tunnel beneath it. Jenna dropped down with her feet first, slipped into the darkness and pulled the grid back over the hole in the same motion. Then she quickly crawled away from the incident light and pressed against the tunnel wall.

She could hear more explosions outside and the distant shouts of the soldiers but up to know nobody seemed to have taken notice of the small human gaining access to their leader’s sanctuary.

Jenna couldn’t help but grin and snicker relieved. “Now I hope Set has just as much luck.” She mumbled to herself, drawing her weapon. Quickly she activated the built-in suppressor Trook had added especially for the close quarter section of their mission, as well as the on-target laser assisted aiming system he had invented for her. That was probably Jenna’s favorite customization of this gun. When she raised the weapon to aim, the laser aiming system, located before the notch, would measure the line between Jenna’s eye, the notch and a possible target – evaluated by both movement and body heat – and micromanipulate her hand through tiny electronic impulses, as Trook had put it, to make every shot a hit.

Unfortunately she hadn’t had a chance to try it out in a real fight until now, yet Set had ordered her to shoot every Irken on sight that she would come across in the tunnels, no matter if it was just an innocent drone or the Tallest. Okay, actually he had said to not open fire on the Tallest on her own under any circumstances but she highly doubted they would confront her in these tunnels of all places. Jenna could barely stand up right in here herself.

She had voiced her qualms about just shooting poor little drones that were oppressed themselves by the Tallest but at that Set had only looked at her blankly, assuring her that each and every one of those “poor little drones” would run straight to the Tallest to alarm them should they spot her. The drones around the tower were much more loyal than those on the _Massive_ had been and only the most indoctrinated of them were tolerated inside the Tallest Tower.

Jenna took a deep breath and snuck forward, her gun at the ready, and tried to make as little noise as possible while listening closely to her surroundings. Though the tunnels were barely quiet; they were filled with low noises, similar to those inside the Prerk nest that sometimes sounded like someone was… whispering. She looked back over her shoulder now and then, making sure nobody had snuck up on her, keeping her back to the tunnel wall and edging sideways along it to make for a smaller target herself.

Set had told her the rough path she had to take, but it was most important that she made her way further under the tower until Set would contact her to find her over her suit’s transmitter. Under no circumstances should she try to get to another floor.

Lost in her thoughts like that she noticed the tiny service drone too late that darted out of another tunnel in front of her and stopped dead in her tracks when she saw the human. Startled Jenna froze as well and just stared down on the tiny Irken that hardly reached up to her knee. But just when she had met the gaze out of dark purple eyes the drone spun around on her tiny heels with a high hiss and ran back the way she came. Cursing wildly, Jenna took up pursuit and tried not to lose the quick Irken but the little shit was fast!

When she took another corner she saw that they were inside a long, straight tube. The Irken was almost at the other end and she would lose her for sure this time! Jenna didn’t think twice and threw herself flat on her stomach to steady her aim, lifting her gun. Two, three plasma shots illuminated the dark tunnel in a glaring red light, binding her for precious seconds! Jenna groaned in pain and rubbed her burning eyes, cursing herself for not taking out her visor from _Void’_ s inbuilt backpack beforehand! There was a short sizzling sound and a dull thud as she hastily reached over her shoulder to jerk the visor from her backpack. The delicate, silicon-like foil wrapped around her face, fastening itself against her temples with tiny needles like her suit to draw energy from her body and boot itself up. The low-light amplifier revealed the outcome of her first fight: the female drone was sprawled face down on the tunnel floor, a fist-sized, smoking hole inside her Pak. She wasn’t moving. Jenna groaned in relief and rested her forehead on her arm.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ..... oh hay remember me? I'm not dead, yay! 
> 
> ugh, uhm, I admit those were some pretty stressful.. months I was in and believe me, I was in a constant state of stress/anxiety that only got worse whenever I thought about that chapter I was supposed to finish ages ago ;____;
> 
> anyway, I didn't mean to worry you guys and I'm truly sorry I kept the radio silence so stubbornly this time, not that it was the first time I went into a sudden hiatus without any notice. welp... 
> 
> Well now I'm back at it again *insert meme noises* and I'm sooooo ready to finish this book! Yes! I called it a gosh diddly-darn book yall. I so so so want to publish this but I have no fricking idea if that would be even possible, legally. HMU if you maybe know a guy who knows a guy.... ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯
> 
> SO! Jenna and Set are not dead yey!!! Buuuuuut.... everyone else is? Kinda? Oopsies. Let's just hope they don't run into a tarp haha... ha


	109. Behind Enemy Lines - Pt. 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [C U R I O S I T Y Twitter](https://twitter.com/CURIOSITYupdate)   
>  [C U R I O S I T Y playlists on Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/user/thetruemek)

###  **\- 34 Behind Enemy Lines –**

******Part 2**

  
  
Shaken, Jenna pushed herself up on her knees and stared at the lifeless frame of the Irken she had just shot. Yet the resent she had expected to feel for herself stayed out. Instead she had to focus to fight down the suddenly upcoming feeling of stress that took hold of her. She had to keep going! But what if another drone would walk through here and discover the dead one? Then the entire tower would immediately be put on high alert!

Quickly Jenna stood up and crouched to run towards the drone. After cautiously looking around, she examined the dead Irken more closely and flinched when she heard a high hiss from within the destroyed Pak. Jenna took a step back and aimed at the unmoving body but the sounds were merely the fried circuitry, sparking and twitching within the metal construct. A few thin streaks of black blood were oozing from the seams of the Pak. That again brought her to the terrible thought that the  _Hive_  had probably noticed the death of the drone, her disconnection from the Nexus as Set had put it. If that was the case then it probably didn’t matter whether she got rid of the corpse or not. But then it would also be completely pointless to keep hidden for longer and sneak through the tower like a rat; if he already knew that they were here they wouldn’t have any other choice but to fight their way to the Tallest!

Jenna saw her hand shaking, her body involuntarily tensing up, bracing, as she already thought sensing the crushing presence of the  _Hive_  inside her brain, who had found her now after all, and she wanted to reach for the Pakrit inside her armor when her Chronometer bleeped, jerking her from the panic. Hastily she clipped her pistol back into the retainer at her back plating and lifted the Chronometer to her ear. Suddenly hope washed through her body like a hot wave, the hope to finally hear Tork’s voice again, or Nemon’s,  _anyone_ from the Resistance who had survived the explosion and the crash!

    “Jenna? Stay where you are.”

Set sounded out of breath but apart from that alright. Although the small spark of hope collapsed in on itself inside her, Jenna was still relieved to hear from him.

    “Set! You gotta help me, I don’t know…”, she stammered but he immediately interrupted her, alarmed, worry in his voice.

    “What happened? Are you alright?” he demanded to know sharply and she nodded impatiently, tussling her hair in guilt.

    “Y- yes, I’m okay. I shot a drone. What should I do now?! If I leave her here, another one will stumble over her and alarm the Tallest! Or do you think the  _Hive_  already knows she’s dead? Can a drone’s Pak transmit their cause of death?!” she blurted back, already feeling her heartbeat quickening. She could hear Set stifle multiple curses on the other end and countless seconds of silence passed before he talked to her again, just as she was about to take a breath and ask if he was still there.

     “Take the drone and go back to the main tunnel from where you came in. Then stick to the left and go further until you get to another ventilation grid. Hurry!” he ordered her and then quickly hung up. Jenna assumed that he was already inside the tower himself and had now taken cover, why she put the Chronometer back into her suit’s backpack and bent down to pick up the dead drone. Luckily the tiny Irken didn’t weigh more than a cat so she was back in the main tunnel in a wink, continuing on deeper into the tower.

After a few dozen meters she could already make out the faint rays of pale light falling through the grid and she deactivated the night vision of her visor. Before she was at the ventilation grid, four spider legs reached into the tunnel, removing the grate without a sound. Suddenly unsettled, Jenna stopped and pressed against the dark wall, involuntarily drawing the dead Irken closer to her chest. It could be someone else than Set just as easily. She held her breath and listened, her free hand reaching for the pistol at her back, ready to shoot.

    “Jenna?”

Immediately her tensed shoulders dropped and she exhaled relived. Set’s metal hand waved at her through the opening and she cast a last glance into the tunnel behind her, but the coast was clear. Then she ran the last meters and grabbed his arm with one hand. In one swift motion Set had pulled her out of the hole and already placed his arm in front of her chest to push her back against the wall beside him while he peeked around the corner they had ended up at. When he had made sure that nobody had noticed them he finally turned around to her.

They took their time to eye the other closely and make sure that they hadn’t gotten hurt. Confused, Jenna raised an eyebrow behind her visor when she couldn’t spot a single scratch on Set.

    “So how the hell did  _you_  get in here?” she wanted to know, taken aback, and he grinned crookedly.

    “You thought you were the only one who got upgrades from Trook?” To underline his apparently rhetoric question he activated his armor to its full mode: the big helmet closed around his head and antennae, which Set was pressing to his head, before it gave off a light glow and suddenly went invisible. Jenna just stared into the empty, vast hallway, blinking befuddled.

    “Uh…” she did confused and could hear muffled chuckling from somewhere in front of her.

    “Hallucinum.” Set just said and she opened her mouth in astonishment, but also slight indignation.

    “Why didn’t  _I_  get a camo-module?! That would have made everything so much easier!” she complained and narrowed her eyes. If you looked closely you could see something like an edge in the air, a transition between the environment and the simulated reflection of the camouflage-material, but it was most likely that the startled Irkens hadn’t noticed the silhouette running past them that looked like an Irken-shaped ghost. So that’s how he’d gotten into the Tower after blowing up the other building with his remote-controlled explosives.

“Come to think of it… why wasn’t our transporter equipped with this tech?! Then we wouldn’t have been…” she stopped her ranting and bit her lip to not give in to her grief and anger again. There would be enough time for that later.

Set, still cloaked, moved away from her, farther into the other hallway next to them. Jenna followed him with her eyes and noticed a few lines of Irken script at the other wall. There were two symbols like arrows, pointing down the hallway. She wondered what it said. Suddenly a flash of light emitted from Set’s invisible frame, like the flash of a camera.

Before she had time to ask what he was doing, and more importantly why he thought that this was a good idea, he already came trotting back to her and deactivated his suit’s cloaking mode. He looked down on her, frowning.

    “Your suit doesn’t have the necessary capacity required to project a complete three-dimensional illusion field; however my Pak does. Trook first would have had to install an entirely new processor into your belt and there was no time for that. The installation on me was easy. Also Tork thought it more important to equip me with the hallucinum and not the transporter, for which we didn’t even have enough material to completely cover it to begin with.” He explained to her and produced a small control pad from his Pak, activating it with a button press. “Besides, the Commander voted his brother invest the remaining material in this right here.”

Jenna raised herself on her toes to examine to gadget in his hands. It just looked like a small remote. Set pulled something else from his Pak that was connected to one of his spider legs, looking like a futuristic sort of crossbow.

    “With this I can shoot tiny amounts of energized hallucinum onto any target and activate a double-mirrored illusion of anything that’s in front of it for a short amount of time. Come one.” He suddenly hissed and already ran around the corner. Jenna was forced to follow him, the dead drone still draped over her arm. Set’s heavy boots barely made a sound on the polished floor as he crossed the distance of the long hallway in record time and she had to quickly change her own suit’s settings to actually keep up with him. Mid-sprint he pointed at the Irken symbols and then at something hidden above the closed door they were running at.

    “That’s the Tallest’s personal elevator to the command center. I covered the camera above it with hallucinum so the techs will only see the still empty hallway, and once it dissolves again,” he briefly stopped to pry the elevator doors open with his bare hands, “we’ll already be on our way to the top.”

Jenna could just shake her head in amazed disbelief, her confidence rising. Set had used all his ingenuity as an invader and elite soldier to turn this hopeless situation completely around! A grin crept up to her face, which Set didn’t return however. Still with his somber expression, he suddenly took the drone from her grasp and simply tossed her lifeless body into the black, bottomless shaft where she quickly disappeared from their view.

Jenna uttered a strangled gasp in shock and looked back up to him, her grin gone as if slapped off her face. Set locked eyes with her for a moment, unmoved, before he jerked his head invitingly into the empty shaft.

    “We have to hurry, Jenna. The cloaking field isn’t going to last forever and the ascent is long.” He said, matter of fact, and stretched out an arm for her. With his free hand and one boot braced against the door he kept the entrance to the elevator tunnel open. Jenna gave a hesitant nod and wrapped her arms around his neck when he pulled her close to his chest, squeezing her tightly for a moment. As soon as she gave him the go ahead Set powerfully pushed off the edge and clutched one of the supporting beams on the wall with his spider legs. Climbing in here was a lot easier than scaling the glass walled building and they quickly gained height.

After a few meters he paused for a second and leaned back so he could look her in the eyes. “You know what’s waiting for us up there, don’t you?” he asked gravely and Jenna answered with a slow nod: “The Tallest. And probably the second half of the soldiers we didn’t see up to now.”

Set grunted affirming at that.

    “Probably. But the Tallest in any case. They will see themselves in the advantage. And they might even have that advantage at first, because when we get up there, their scanners will notice us, most likely a lot sooner than that. Though they won’t attack us right away and instead try to force us to surrender, especially once they realize you’re here with me. But what they don’t know is that you have the syringe of Pakrit in your suit. As far as they know, they will have to assume that I first have to inject you with the Pakrit myself. That is our only advantage over them. I’ll distract them and then it’s your turn, alright?”

Now Jenna nodded a lot more determined. She was ready. Set relaxed a little. “Okay. Hold on tight.”

   
  


Although Set had told her that the ascent would be long, barely a quarter of an hour had passed when he already swept the doors to the highest level of the tower with his scanner and then forced them open with his spider legs. Jenna’s heart was by now racing away in her chest. She was aware of the cold sweat that had formed on her palms beneath the heavy suit and she felt somewhat lightheaded. But she was also highly focused; the adrenaline in her blood worked like a watered down version of Pakrit and sharpened her senses, sending more blood into her muscles, preparing her to fight for her life.

They were standing in yet another wide hallway, arching both to the left and right. The walls were tinted dark red by the flashing light of an emergency siren that made their shadows dance behind them.

Jenna looked around, yet there was no one else here besides them. She didn’t like it one bit. When she looked up to Set she was confused to see him standing not all too embattled beside her. He was standing tall, staring at the heavy double steel door in front of them. At both ends of the arching hallway, Jenna could see more of those doors. She was halfway expecting those doors to open behind them and spit out a group of a hundred Enforcers as soon as they would try to open the big door.

Again she looked at Set, trying to read what he was thinking of all this. His face was hardened and intent, he had retracted his helm completely into the shoulder plates of his armor and she could see that he still kept his antennae flatly pressed to the back of his head. His hands were balled up into tight fists. She bumped one of them with the back of her hand. Immediately his head snapped towards her.

    “You okay?” Jenna asked under her breath and he just nodded curtly. Something wasn’t right, he seemed to have noticed it as well. “I love you.” She added and the corner of his mouth twitched.

    “I know.” Set mumbled tensed and walked up to the door. To Jenna’s utter surprise, but also horror, it opened at once. So Set had been right about the Tallest already knowing that they were here. Hatred boiled up inside her. Her whole tension was suddenly turned into pure, red rage and she followed Set with long, determined steps into the command center, her chin defiantly raised to appear taller. She felt here jaws clench in another ancient reaction to the adrenaline, from a more primal part of her evolution; she was getting ready to  _bite_.

Quickly her eyes had scanned the vast, completely round room stretching out before them. The sight of it reminded her of the  _Massive_ ’s command bridge where she had thrown herself between Purple and Ria back when. But this room offered a view out onto Irk’s capitol and the fight above them. One of the big panorama view windows, covering one half of the command center, had a long, jagged crack, probably from one of the countless explosions outside.

The fight was still far from over; the Prerk nest had fallen back frighteningly far and Jenna couldn’t even see the  _Vengeance_  from here anymore. But then her gaze already darted to two terribly familiar shapes that were hovering a good foot in the air in front of the windows, their shadowed silhouettes gradually illuminated by the ceiling lights as they floated into the middle of the room like on a silent command.

Ice-cold, pitiless eyes – blood red and a vile shade of purple – pierced into hers and Jenna crouched down a little, every single muscle in her body tensing up on account of the almost touchable waves of menace coming from these aliens. She put her trust into Set’s superior reflexes and briefly looked around the command center once more, looked for further signs of an ambush. She spotted a few techs behind some consoles way in the back of the room but the Tallest’s defense, their life guards, were nowhere to be seen. Again, she felt like having just run into a trap.

Though now it was too late to turn around, now they could only fight and hope to win.

The two opposing sides scrutinized each other, although Red barely cast Jenna a triumphing glare before his eyes locked with Set’s in a silent battle for dominance. Purple, however, stared at her with unveiled, manic glee what riled Jenna up even more. Oh, they were in for a surprise!

    “Set. I’m surprised to see you here.” Red finally said into the tense silence, entirely unsurprised. “And, to cap it all, with the very same creature we owe all this bullshit to. Have you finally come to surrender?” The oozing sneer in his voice was like gasoline into the fire that fueled Jenna’s rage for these monsters. She clenched her fists and took a threatening step towards them.

    “Fat chance!” she spat out and noticed the wide, horrible grin on Purple’s face which was now also starting to curl Red’s thin lips in the same moment Set suddenly spoke up behind her: “Yes.”

Jenna froze and shot a quick, disbelieving look up towards him. He wanted to  _surrender_?! Was he planning something? Was he maybe speculating that the two Tallest would take them directly to the  _Hive_  if they surrendered? She was honestly doubting that theory.

    “Set!” she hissed. “What are you-“, before she could finish the sentence, he sank down on one knee and submissively lowered his head.

    “I’ve come to beg your forgiveness, my Tallest. I brought the human as you demanded and now I ask for a chance at redemption in return.”

For the second time this day, Jenna felt as if she was falling into nothingness. Every word was sincere, she could  _hear_  it, and the fact that Set wasn’t even looking at her…

    “Set?” she tried again, feebly, her voice catching in her throat. Alarmed, she looked back at the Tallest and broke out in a cold sweat when she saw the teeth-baring grin Red was wearing now as he slowly hovered closer to them. His claw-like, withered fingers were twitching eagerly.

    “Listen, if this is a scheme, sh- shouldn’t you have told me before?” The fear exploding in her guts was like a knife someone had rammed into her spine and was now twisting with relish. Purple was following Red a few feet behind, rubbing his hands together in content.

Set raised his eyes from the floor, but still wouldn’t look at her. He looked at the Tallest who approached him, his antennae quivering on his head.

    "I’m sorry Jenna. But I can’t do this anymore. I can’t bear to witness all that suffering anymore, all the dead… what the hell did they die for?” Now he did look at her and stood when Red motioned him to. “Look around; we’ve lost already and it’s… it’s best for us this way. They won’t harm you, they promised me-“

    “You  _contacted_  them?!” Jenna screamed dismayed and recoiled from him, from Red who was now standing right in front of her. Purple floated lithely to the side – they were zeroing in on her, they would slowly drive her into a corner. But she still trusted Set. He wouldn’t do this! He  _couldn’t_  do this!

He ignored her outcry and continued as if she hadn’t interrupted him: “and they won’t kill me. I want you to survive because I love you. But  _I_  want my old rank back. I’m sick of fighting for some doomed cause and hide like a criminal from my own people. Which is why I had to separate us from the rebels.” He said it without any emotion, cold and sober.

Jenna shook her head. Her stomach dropped, her throat tightened around itself as she realized what he was implying.

    “It… it was you? Y- you did…” she panted faintly. Red was hovering right next to Set in one place and towered him by a good arm’s length. His grin had been replaced by an amused and curious expression as he looked from him to Jenna.

Set nodded, as though he had read her thoughts.

    “Yes. I planted a bomb in the transporter and remote-detonated it with my Pak. I took the risk of the explosion and their death so they wouldn’t interfere with my plan to separate you from the stealth team. But first and foremost, I had to get rid of the Zar’tak before my intentions would put me on his radar eventually.” He wasn’t proud of what he’d done, that much she was still convinced to make out, but he didn’t regret it either.

Now he looked up and directly at her yet his face became blurred before her eyes from the hot tears welling up in them. She shook her head again, viciously. She trusted Set, still! She knew that he was stronger than this - that he wouldn’t just give up like that, not without a fight! He simply wasn’t able to act this way, not anymore!

    “I- I don’t believe you. You’re lying.” Her words were barely a croak and again she had to step away from Purple, sneaking up on her like a giant praying mantis. “Set, tell me that this is just a ruse for them!” Another step backwards, Jenna noticed from the corner of her eyes that she was almost with her back against the wall. “Set,  _please_!” she shouted hoarse and raised her hands defensively.

When he only looked away guiltily she cursed and suddenly tore the cover off from the plating of her left arm. Her finger jammed the button for the emergency Pakrit all the way in and she clenched her teeth, bracing for the jolt of energy and the inevitable blood bath she would leave in her wake. She was ready!          

Nothing.

She pushed the button again, even harder. Purple had stopped warily before her and even floated a good bit back. Red had cocked his head to one side. Set had just closed his eyes. Horrified, Jenna turned her head towards her left arm where the hidden compartment for the Pakrit syringe lay open inside her armor. It was empty.

Her knees caved in but she managed to catch herself in time. Her right hand clawed into the plating around her arm, she opened her mouth in speechless terror and blinked frantically to get rid of the tears still clouding her vision. But the syringe stayed gone.

    “I removed the syringe of Pakrit when you were unconscious.” Set confessed voicelessly. Red gave him an acknowledging nod.

    “Well done, invader. Sorry for the inconveniences on your way to the Tower but after your… admittedly  _unexpected_ message, after everything that has happened, you can’t blame us for being a little… skeptic concerning your intentions. But I see that we were - fortunately – wrong about you after all.” The red-eyed Tallest purred and Set inclined his head loyally. “And so everything turns out in our favor in the end, wouldn’t you agree, Purps?”

    “You… you god- _fucking_   _traitor_!” Jenna screamed at the top of her lungs, clutching her pounding head. They were dead! They were all dead because of him! Nemon and Tork, both like fathers to her! Zar… gentle Zar who had known her inside out, who had saved her from the mental clutches of the  _Hive_  over and over again! “I  _trusted_  you! They  _all_  trusted you! And you  _killed_ them!”

Jenna’s breath was a strained fit of hisses; she tried to suppress the sobs that wanted to shake her body and jerked the pistol from her holster. Purple recoiled in start when shot after shot went off into his direction but the red-hot thermal-plasma projectiles all glanced off his polished chest armor. Quickly Jenna aimed at his unprotected head but now Set had crossed the distance between them and grabbed her wrist to wrest the gun from her hand.

    “No! Let go off me you fucking bastard!” She threw herself back, freed her wrist from his grasp and sprinted for the door. She had to get out of here! She had to warn the rebels, maybe they could still get away if she was fast enough!

When the door slid open Jenna jumped back and gasped alarmed. Just as she had suspected, the hallway had filled up with Enforcers, looking down on her out of expressionless masks. Now her legs gave in after all; all strength seemed to leave her and she sank helplessly to the cold metal floor. She had trouble to grasp that his was really happening. What if it was just another vision from the  _Hive_? Had he maybe even kept her in one of his nightmares the entire time like he had back on the moon when she had failed to turn herself in? Was everything she had experienced only an illusion? A thought-out construct of an artificial intelligence to study her mind like in Matrix?

She raised her gaze to the nightmarish figure that was Red as he floated over to her and really sank down on one knee to run his claws all the way through her short hair and grab her chin to force her to look at him.

Was she possibly even dead already? Had she died on the  _Massive_  and was now stuck in hell? Or had the  _Hive_  maybe absorbed the measly rest of her consciousness?

    “Take our lovely Jenna here down to the Nexuslab. It’s high time we prepared her for the  _Hive_.” He instructed the enforcers and was probably still talking in Vortian so she would know exactly what was going to happen to her now. So apparently more Irkens beside the Tallest knew about the  _Hive,_  and the Nexus that connected him to the Irkens, after all.

With a last, desperate exertion she took a swing at Red, who dodged swiftly and chuckled darkly. Immediately she was grabbed by multiple hands and tried to fend them off, punching and kicking left and right, and her suit had still enough power left to rip the mask off of one Enforcer. For a heartbeat she stared into his cold, dark red eyes and then punched him square in the face. Satisfied, she heard the crunching sound of bones breaking and teeth splintering. The Irken howled in pain and surprise and recoiled from her. A second Enforcer in front of her took the full brunt of her boot under his chin, a weak spot of Irkens, and slumped down unconscious, but now the others had realized that the human wasn’t all that demoralized and lunged at her like one man.

Jenna was wrestled to the ground and her arms painfully twisted onto her back. One of the black ops fighters found the buckle of her belt and  _Void_  suddenly disappeared, leaving her in just her overall. She roared frustrated, muffled since her face was being pressed into the floor, and she bucked beneath the hold of the Enforcer who was pinning her down with his knee in her back. Someone put handcuffs on her that closed around her fists and then she felt something she had hoped to never see again.   
  
Jenna screamed wordlessly and tried to somehow tuck her chin in on her chest but a cold, armored hand simply grabbed her face and bent her neck back so that the other Enforcer could wrap the heavy metal ring around her throat. The explosive collar closed tightly around her neck and flashed warningly.

She surrendered; her aching body wasn’t obeying her properly anymore and slumped away from under her when one of them jerked her up truculently by her bound arms. They would have to  _carry_ her out of here! Jenna closed her eyes, overpowered, when they eventually did. She was grateful that the door closed itself behind them so she didn’t have to hear the Tallest chuckling maniacally anymore, only the hissing sound of the Enforcers’ masks.

This time she took the elevator down. Jenna was kneeling on the floor of the cabin between the tall Irkens, her glare steadfast set on the black boots in front of her, and she felt lost.

Nobody said a thing. She would have expected the Enforcers to congratulate each other for their fine catch or even mock her, but they actually hadn’t said a single word since the assault. Set had been right, they were definitely black ops.       

At the thought of Set she started to shiver from hate and disgust. Some of her fighting spirit returned and invigorated her numb limbs, yet she sat tight. The same way as on Set’s ship, she waited for an opportunity to escape. As long as she was in here it was simply stupid to try anything. She didn’t have her belt anymore which was still dangling from a massive, armored fist behind her.

    “Where are you taking me?” she finally asked croaking, her voice shredded from screaming. None of the Enforcers bothered to even move a muscles, the steady, hissing sound of their breaths didn’t change one bit, making it seem as if they hadn’t even heard her. Though she was sure they could understand Vortian. “Are you taking me to the  _Hive_  straight away, or…” she kept asking. She had heard what Red had ordered them to do but she wanted to winkle out a reaction of her guards and try to find out how easily she could tick them off.

The answer was a pointy toecap in her abused back and she hissed at the pain. Okay, she definitely wouldn’t try her luck with those guys. Being left with nothing else to do she went to rack her brain feverishly. Tork and the rebels had searched the entirety of the lower levels within the tower and still hadn’t found anything that would have pointed them into the  _Hive_ ’s direction. So where were the Enforcers taking her then?

Suddenly the elevator stopped abruptly and the doors gently slid back. Before Jenna had the chance to peek around the Enforcers' boots, and catch a glimpse of where they had stopped, the one behind her pulled some sort of closed helmet over her head that pressed against her face like a tight mask, making her blind and deaf. Panicked, she jerked her fettered arms up to get rid of the mask, afraid she would suffocate. But the helmet gave off a huffing noise and soon enough the cool, artificial air of Irk tickled her nostrils. Jenna sucked it up greedily.

Two pairs of hands, or more, grabbed her, pulling her up onto her feet more than ungently and all of a sudden her dark world summersaulted! Her shocked shout sounded muffled even in her own ears when one of the Enforcers who had grabbed her threw her over his shoulder without a warning and marched along. Even if she had been prepared for this Jenna would have completely lost her sense for orientation now at the latest. The Enforcer fell into a loose trot with her on his shoulder and the constant up and down made her sick to her stomach.

Jenna squeezed her eyes shut despite the darkness and focused on trying not to puke.

   
  


She had no idea where she was, whether she was beneath the surface or high up in the air. There had been no noticeable slope or stairs, no change in the atmospheric pressure, probably because of that stupid mask, that would have given it away when the Enforcer suddenly stopped and dropped her to the ground. The only thing she noticed was a strange chilliness. A heartbeat later she felt something on her head and shook it wildly, but was immediately seized by multiple hands again until one of her guards had pulled the mask from her face. Glaring white light blinded her maladjusted eyes and even hurt through her clenched lids.

Jenna cringed away from the light, groaning. Now she could hear again as well. All around her was a steady set of noises; whirring, bleeping and muffled Irken voices, quietly talking in their clicking and buzzing tongue. Baffled she tried to peek from one eyelid. Without the strange voices she could have sworn that she was in the  _Rebellion_ ’s MedBay. Or the lab.

Realizing that she tensed up again, trying her best to get used to the lighting more quickly and scan her surroundings as fast as she could! Red  _did_  say something about a lab, after all. A Nexuslab.

    “Fuck…” she muttered under her breath and opened each eye in turns to better bear the intensity of the light above her. Suddenly an Irken of roughly Ria’s height stepped into her view and blocked out some of the sheen. Jenna was only able to make out a huge pair of safety goggles, bolted to the head of the Irken, completely hiding their eyes behind the black shades. The mouth of her opponent was covered with a mask as well but the most threatening about them had to be the black latex apron they were wearing over a simple, violet uniform, and that was covered over and over in blood of various colors and states of dryness. Just as the black gloves she was already familiar with.

She recoiled again and now snapped her eyes open. Her back bumped into the boots of the Enforcer and Jenna quickly pulled her feet under her body, shifting her weight forward, and rolled onto the balls of her feet as quick as a wink. Suddenly she was standing and even towered the scientist a little who took a startled step back from her and yelped something in their language, gesticulating hectically.

    “Where am I? What the hell do you do in here?!” she snarled in Vortian, determined not to submit herself to any experiments without a fight.

The harsh tongue of their sworn enemies seemed to rattle the Irken completely now and they uttered a shrill command, pointing at Jenna. Before she had time to react, yet even think about turning around, the armored side of the enforcer’s hand came crashing down on her temple and she was out immediately.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> .... ooPS?? ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯


	110. Invader Set

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [C U R I O S I T Y Twitter](https://twitter.com/CURIOSITYupdate)   
>  [C U R I O S I T Y playlists on Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/user/thetruemek)

###  **\- 35 Invader Set –**

_Irk – Tallest Tower – Command Center_

Set just watched as the Enforcers carried the screaming and struggling Jenna out of the room and he was glad that his armor was hiding the tension in his muscles that would have otherwise given away how hard it was for him not to act. In this moment he probably hated himself even more than the Tallest. Her words were still echoing in his mind, the whole weight of her disgust and hate that she had hurled at him. She was right. He _was_ a traitor, a goddamn bastard for what he’d done, for what he was now doing to her.

When the Enforcers had finally taken Jenna away and the door slid shut behind them, Set relaxed a little. Now he could focus on the actual part of this mission. Right now he couldn’t worry about her, what might be done to her in his absence.

Red and Purple followed their soldiers with their eyes, both contented. Unwatched by them Set scrutinized his leaders. They appeared certain of their victory, completely satisfied with how things were developing. Slowly, very slowly, he changed the grip on his rifle, calling up the inner interface of his Pak.

Suddenly Red’s dark chuckling died down and he placed his spindly fingers almost tenderly on the barrel of Set’s gun, pointing it down to the ground without much effort. Set’s glare shot up and met the eyes of the Tallest, who considered him with a crooked smile and his eyes slightly narrowed.

    “Oh, Set…” he purred and a mild warning resounded in his voice that had Set’s blood freeze in his veins. “You didn’t really think we wouldn’t see what your true intentions were now, did you?”

Purple slowly hovered past Red, behind Set, and snickered maliciously. The invader held Red’s glare unfazed, didn’t move a muscle when he continued, now lost in thoughts, his long fingers drumming a restless rhythm onto the rifle.

    “Though I have to wonder… why did you turn her in to us when you were planning to kill us all along? You could’ve come alone, without betraying your precious human to us.”

Set grinned, but it was more an angry baring of his teeth.

    “You never would’ve let me enter the Tower without her.”

Red nodded, measured. “Yeah, you’re right, I give you that. Well then… how do you think should we continue this from here?” He grabbed the rifle tighter and wrested it from Set’s hands effortlessly. His red eyes flashed up in triumph and he threw the gun carelessly away. Behind him, Set’s antennae noticed the change in the air around them as Purple closed in on him and picked up the silent scraping of his Pak opening.

    “Set, darling, you’re all alone and there’s two of us. You couldn’t defeat us the last time and only escaped alive by the tip of your antennae.” Red raised a hand to let his fingertips dance up the metal prosthetic of Set’s arm, all the way to his neck.

    “If I recall correctly, you didn’t exactly _run_ from that fight unscathed either, Red.” He shot back, raising his antennae challengingly. Purple hissed a threat in his back but Red just grinned sardonically while his long fingers grabbed Set’s chin, digging into his skin like hooks.

    “That’s still _almighty Tallest_ Red for you. Those rebels really did deprave you my dear… but we’ll knock that insolent behavior out of you soon enough.” With that he bent over the smaller Irken and pressed his lips on Set’s. He wanted to recoil but Red grabbed him tighter, forcing his lips gruffly apart to wedge his tongue into his mouth and curl it around his. He had to compose himself to not bite down immediately. Instead he allowed Red to maul him and squashed the capsule he had been hiding in the back of his mouth at the same time. The bitter poison spread in his mouth and then he fought back, taking control over the gross kiss and spread the poison in Red’s mouth with his tongue. Immediately the Tallest pried himself free and spat out.

    “What the- you slippery little bitch what the fuck did you give me?!”

Set grinned, even when Purple knocked him down from behind and stomped a boot into his back.

    “It’s called Black Hole. The Prerk developed it themselves, used it to take us out. One of those rebels you speak of, a friend of mine, was able to produce it in a much higher concentration. Now it only requires skin contact to take effect, so you can spit all you want. Oh, and of course I took the antidote before I got here.”

Red’s boot hit his cheek before Set had enough time to turn his face away. He grunted at the pain and fell on his side. Purple uttered a surprised hiss when his foot slipped off his back, then Set’s heavy combat boot crashed into his knee and the hiss turned into a howl. Red cursed furiously and let barbed spiderlegs shoot from his Pak to slash at Set but the ex-invader blocked each blow with his own spiderlegs and rolled up on his feet. One of his Pak legs cut Red’s face and the Tallest quickly jumped back.  
  
Purple kept his distance to Set as well, his own spiderlegs folded over his head, ready to strike. Though he had only drawn four of them.

Just when Set realized what he was up to the second Tallest already lunged at him, carried by the thrust of his jet-engines, quick as a bullet. Set’s own Pak legs were too slow and he got thrown back by Purple. The sharp barbs of the metal legs scratched his face and the unprotected part of his neck but he only screamed out when they tried to stab his opened Pak. But now Set had transformed his spiderlegs and directed the outlet of his thrusters at Purple. The violet eyes widened in horror, then Purple’s face was consumed by a stream of boiling air and his shrieking numbed Set’s senses. The thrust freed him from the spiderleg’s at the same time and he felt alarmed how the barbs ripped off parts of his armor!

Purple hissed pained and hovered away from him, his scorched face smoldering slightly and one side was frozen into a grayish, singed mask. Red looked as though he was quite capable of killing Set with a mere thought by now. Both Tallest retreated further away from him, wary, but now he had been forced with his back towards the glassed wall just like back on the _Massive_. Only this time he wasn’t half unconscious from blood loss.

    “I leave it up to you to choose: surrender and tell me where the _Hive_ is, and I’ll let you live.” He offered them. Though he had no intention whatsoever to leave his former leaders alive. He would kill them, no matter what happened. But he was hoping for another speech from Red that would grant him more time to polish his tactics. And for the drug to take its full effect. He doubted that Red knew exactly what the Black Hole would do to him yet Set could already see his Pak legs twitching. His Pak wouldn’t be able to prolong its detoxication process for much longer now. Although he wasn’t quite sure he had given Red enough to really knock him out.

Red barked a harsh laugh: “As if you could destroy us! And even if; your precious Jenna will already be long gone and then you will never find her again. It’s you who will die here today, Set! For betraying us, for deceiving your entire, superior race! For that I will personally skin you alive!”

 _We’ll see about that…_ , Set thought grim-faced. Without averting his eyes from Red he tried to spot his rifle and finally found it way in the back of the room, right behind the two Tallest. But to get it he would need a distraction…

Using his Pak’s inner interface he sent a simple signal to his trusty SIR unit.

    “You’re forgetting something very important…” he said, grinning. Red and Purple both tensed up, they knew he was planning something. “I was trained to invade enemy planets and conquer them, no matter who or what my enemies would be. I was _made_ for it.”

    “And we can eradicate you just as easily!” Purple spat. Now an armor-piercing turret jutted from his Pak like the one Tork had shot off Red’s back on the _Massive_. Set shook his head despite the new threat.

    “Oh no, it was _you_ who made sure I would be the best invader of all times. And my current mission is Irk.”

Suddenly a huge explosion shook the tower in its foundation and nearly threw them off their feet. Then a second jet crashed into the upper part of the tower and engulfed the command center in bright red flames. Parts of the ceiling came crashing down; Red and Purple reflexively turned away to shield their eyes against the flying shards from the bursting windows. In the same second Set activated the camouflage mode of his suit, ran past the Tallest and grabbed his rifle off the floor, immediately opening fire at them, aiming for the open panels in their Paks to damage them.

But the Tallest caught themselves much quicker than he had anticipated: Purple was quick-witted enough to deploy a force-field, shielding both himself and Red, who by now had lost all control over his Pak and commented that fact with a frustrated roar. Set’s high-impact projectiles were deflected by the energy-field without any effect and he cursed wildly, giving away his position. Purple returned fire immediately with his turret and forced Set to get to cover.

Another Irken jet exploded against the dome of the tower and made it rock dangerously.

    “Who is flying these fucking attacks?!” Red yelled into the comm in his gauntlet.

    “Shit, Red, where is he?! I can’t see him!” Purple shouted shrilly and got a slap from Red in return.

    “Use your scanner you idiot!”

One of the Techs from the back of the room piped up over the noise: “M- my Tallest, S-Sir, we’re receiving distress signals from nearly all ships of the armada! Something is scrambling their systems, the captains lost control over their vessels! The jets are launching kamikaze-attacks on the Tower and the rebel fleet is regrouping to board the Viral Tanks! We haven’t been able to make out the source of this malfunction yet!” he yelled. Despite the fight and the overall destruction around them they were still operating the consoles to observe the happenings on and above Irk. Set wasn’t sure if they were actually coded to ever rise from their places and leave.

He grinned contented and threw himself out of the way to dodge another shot into his direction. So his signal had reached SIR.

 

Through the built-in binoculars in his helmet the Vortian peered over the ledge of the skyscraper they were currently huddled up on. The massive Tallest Tower appeared like a giant torch from down here. Jet after jet dive-bombed with deadly precision onto the dome of the tower and went up in a fierce explosion. He just hoped Set would survive his self-initiated bombardment.

    “Give me an update, SIR.” Tork grunted and waved the small robot closer. SIR saluted sharply before he already tied into his report: “Our modified SIR units have boarded the bigger ships of the armada and taken control over their systems, Commander. The rest of these units will commence with the elimination of the ship’s crew right away. Single squads on the outside hijack Voot Cruisers to use them as a distraction for my master.” He went silent for a second, his single lens changing from blue to red and blue again in a sickening speed. “Receiving new transmission… My master stopped the bombardment. Awaiting new orders… high-speed response requested. We are to advance, Commander.” He notified and Tork nodded with a lopsided sneer.

    “Heh, looks like he just wanted to take a breather, hm? Well then…” he raised himself up with a grunt and waved at the waiting members of the stealth team who all immediately stirred and lifted their heads when their Commander got to his feet. Most of them had suffered some ugly burn scars from their shuttle’s explosion, even Korr, the Prerk captain that had been ordered by his queen to join them. But none of them had died in this crazy maneuver. Tork knew they would carry those scars with pride once this was all over, he too.

“Men, we just received our orders to move out. Set will be in need of support and as long as the Tallest have their hands full with him we got a free ticket to the Tower. SIR will guide us. Zar.” He still hadn’t gotten used to the nickname Jenna had given the Telepath and thought it was awkward to call him that, especially when those eerie green eyes were looking at him like they were now, but he would have found it more awkward to not have any name for him at all.

The Zar’tak stepped up to him, though it was more a soft gliding, and inclined his head.

    “You know what you have to do. I trust you won’t fail in your mission.” The Commander urged him and the telepath nodded solemnly.

    _“Good luck to you, Commander.”_ He just sent back and vanished in a small cloud of smoke. Tork turned towards his team.

    “You know your orders well enough by now. Stay together and secure your positions until we’ve made it to the tower. Move out!” He observed the rappelling himself and made sure each of them executed their movements orderly. Nemon stepped up next to him and looked with worriedly furrowed brows towards their target.

    “So this means she’s already…” he muttered tensed and interrupted himself when Tork nodded and placed a hand on his shoulder.

    “Probably. Let’s just hope the Zar’tak finds her before something is done to her that we can’t undo…”

 

Jenna came to again when the high shriek of an electric buzz saw started howling from somewhere next to her. Immediately she was wide awake but without orientation and threw her head around to find the source of the threatening sound. Her gaze fell on the back of an Irken scientist, bent over an operating table and just now pushing down the cartwheel-sized buzz saw into something on the table. Green blood splattered in every direction and she quickly averted her eyes again.

Yet the masked face of a second scientist was already hovering over her face. She saw herself reflected in the giant, black glasses of his safety goggles; her eyes opened wide in terror, dried blood on the side of her face where the Enforcer had knocked her out and the faint flashing of the explosive collar around her neck. She wanted to fend him off when he reached out a hand for her face, but she noticed mortified that she had been bound to the table by her hands and ankles.

The gloved hand slapped her cheek lightly and she bared her teeth at him, what made him recoil in start.

    “I’m awake, _asshole_!” she panted out croakily, the metal collar choking her. The Irken said something to someone behind her and before Jenna could turn her head around a big, armored hand placed itself on her forehead, pinning her head down on the table like vices. She hissed in pain, her head felt like it would burst at the gentlest touch!

While the Enforcer held her in place a second scientist joined the first, then a third and together they secured Jenna’s head with something that could easily have been an actual vice. Then they examined her. They probed, felt, scanned, rayed her and did god-knows-what to her. They were _thorough_. Jenna blocked it all out. Her eyes were steadily fixed on the backmost wall of the lab, captivated by a morbid curiosity. Countless different aliens and life forms were stuck in glass tubes, not unlike the one Set had caught her in, neatly stacked along the wall up to the ceiling and apparently trapped in an eternal slumber. She recognized Vortians and Ilenians, even a Djelb and something that looked like a very small version of the Steelhunters. And Prerk. Almost every fifth tube housed one of the insect like aliens. She shivered on the operating table.

Involuntarily she was reminded of what the Meekrob had once told her in form of the Zar’tak, that the Irkens were abducting single members of different species themselves to conduct experiments on them. Was this maybe the true agenda of the _Hive_? His goal? To find something… or someone among all these creatures? But for what purpose?

 

    _To become better._

The terrible answer echoed through her head and she winced on the table, shutting her eyes as if she would be able to block out the _Hive_ that way. It was no use. If anything the darkness only strengthened the suffocating presence that seemed to place itself on her chest like something physical, slowly pressing the air out of her lungs. Jenna tore her eyes open again, struggling for air and frantically writhed between the metal cuffs that bound her to the table.

    “What do you want from me?!” she sobbed loudly. The Irkens around her didn’t pay the stammering human any mind and kept focusing on their tests. Jenna would have loved to bite the Enforcers hand and entice him to knock her out again but now she couldn’t even move her head anymore.

The _Hive_ chuckled inside her head. Cold and emotionless.

 

_Jenna. I thought you already knew that much. I want you, your body. I want the potential that your mind represents in conjunction with your young physical form. You humans are so primitive… as the Irkens once were when I found them and made them a vessel to my will._

Suddenly it all made sense. Her dreams, especially those before her episodes. The Paks that hunted her and her child, that caught the humans around her, sticking something to their back and turning them against the other humans. The subjugation of the entire galaxy through the Irkens and their abduction of aliens – it all made sense now. Jenna swallowed the truth heavily.

    “I… _we_ are the next step, right? The next host for you.” She could only whisper, that’s how much she was afraid of being right. And as if to confirm her fear the _Hive_ hummed affirmatively in her mind.

 

    _Smart little thing. Yes, your race will be my next vessel. You are… perfect, almost. The Irkens satisfied my requirements enough to take a hold in this galaxy. They were strong, easy to manipulate and their planet was centrally located. But ultimately they were just a means to an end to find my next, better conjunction. I’ve been looking for so long now… longer than your little brain can comprehend… for the perfect host, the perfect connection. I’m daring to hope that you might be this host, Jenna. You will be the first and the last human to bear me. Only you I will grant this honor. And you will be the beginning of a new generation of my clones to reach the next galaxy._

Jenna could only listen, she couldn’t simply clasp her hands over her ears and ignore him, even if her hands hadn’t been tied to this table. But she drew her own conclusions inevitably, connected what had only been pure speculation up to now.

    “The Paks… they’re your clones?” she asked hesitatingly and felt a touch of frustration within the _Hive_ ’s presence.

 

    _I see, unfortunately your language has no term that directly describes this… consider them more like extensions of my core. Parts of myself, my eyes, ears and feelers in the universe. Since my origin they have constantly changed, with each new race they took on a different form. I wonder how they will evolve from you… but every higher species in one line of origin looks the same in the beginning, doesn’t it?_

Out of the blue, the _Hive_ directed Jenna’s attention to one of the scientists in the background. He was standing in front of a large container, filled with a doughy, slimy liquid that she could see dripping onto the floor. As carefully as a midwife he grabbed something inside the liquid and started to pull it our. At the same time the two Enforcers left and right from Jenna finally undid the bounds around her wrists and her head and pulled her up into a sitting position. Upright, she had a better view into the container. Something was moving inside the liquid; pale, see-through tentacles wrapped around the Irken’s wrists who tried to grab the slippery creature.

Jenna threw herself against the hold of the Enforcers, tried to break free and was pushed down, over her legs. The back of her knees screamed in agony from being overstrained so harshly. Only now did she realize that the scientists had stripped her overall down to her hips. Her naked, unprotected back was covered in goose bumps from the cold air and from fear.

A loud splashing erupted from the vat, then she heard steps approaching her and the agitated mumbling of the scientists.

    “What is that?! What the hell is that thing?! Take it away! Oh god, please get it away from me!!” she screamed panicked and tried to turn away. Her shoulder joints gave a weird crunch when the Enforcers only tightened their grip on her arms. Suddenly something stung her arm. Haunted, Jenna looked at it, just as the Irken doctor pulled the thick needle out of her skin again. Something pinkish was still glistening inside. A wave of energy shot through her. They had given her Pakrit!

    “Oh you stupid _morons_ …” Jenna growled triumphing and was already about to unleash her power onto the scientists and the Enforcers, when she felt a second sting, right at the base of her nape. Like a puppet cut loose from its strings she collapsed without being able to move a muscle except her head which she turned around, confused. “What… what the fuck…” she gasped aghast, her chest heaving heavily trying to breathe. Something cold and wet touched her back and she screamed in disgust and panic. Countless slimy arms wrapped tightly around her body and clung to her, seemed to become one with her skin. Lightheaded from rage and disgust Jenna twisted her neck to look over her shoulder and saw an amoeba-like, slime-covered thing, sitting on her back and feeling around for her spine.

 

    _This is a protoform of a Pak. Just like the one I used thousands of years ago to create the first ‘Tallest’. It has paralyzed you so you won’t struggle despite being fueled with Pakrit. As soon as it has finished connecting with your neural system they will take you to the end of this complex, where you will be ready to receive my gift and create an entirely new nexus between us. The beginning of our transformation into something… sublime._

Jena cried out in fear and desperation. She felt the delicate stinger that had drilled into her spinal cord now all too distinctly and couldn’t do anything to shake the protoform off of her despite all that raw energy still coursing unused through her system. She wanted to die. She couldn’t allow this transformation to happen! Ever since her abduction and the discovery of the threat the _Hive_ and the Irkens were posing, she had tried, ofttimes under danger for her own life, to protect humankind from them. And now she out of all people was supposed to be their demise?

Determined she opened her mouth and stuck her tongue out, ready to bite it off. If this was all she could do, to give her life, then she would gladly take this chance to cheat the _Hive_ off his victory!

 

    _Oh no, you don’t!_

The Enforcers reacted on his silent command: one of them pulled her up, the other shoved his hand into her mouth and prevented her teeth from mutilating herself. Jenna screamed frustrated, a choked gurgle that came out muffled from behind the armored glove. The tentacles constricted tighter around her, something was pressing painfully into two points of her back, as if the protoform was trying to drill holes into her flesh. She was lost.

Jenna closed her eyes, unable to move, unable to scream out her agony or end her own life. She stopped struggling and just hoped that the _Hive_ would have been wrong and her body wasn’t suited for the procedure. She hoped it would kill her here and now.

A green light flashed behind her closed eyelids and she thought for a second she had only imagined it, a last wish of her overwhelmed mind.

 

    _You?! You insolent little abomination, I thought you were dead!  
_

The furious roar of the _Hive_ made Jenna look up. Beside her the two Enforcers suddenly became nervous. Then it got pitch-black around them. It was no natural darkness, it was such an ink-black darkness that she was sure this was what a black hole looked like. Something isolated her mind, laid itself around her thoughts like a protective wall and blocked out the _Hive_ ’s crushing presence for a moment. Static filled the room like a thick cloud of smoke.

    _“Jenna! Use the Pakrit! You may not be able to move but you can still use your mental abilities to fight back! Banish him from your mind!”_ At the sound of Zar’s voice she felt tears of pure relief and hope stream down her face and she used the power of those feelings to catch herself. Around her she heard the screams of the Enforcers and scientists, green flashes tore the darkness apart now and then and once she saw his wide open jaws, a ghastly, green glowing outline of thousands of teeth that snapped at something before it vanished again.

Jenna focused as hard as she could, using the Pakrit to rebuild the shattered walls around her mind and free herself from the mental claws of the _Hive_. Zar was here, that was enough to save her!

She felt the protoform thrashing on her back, doubling its efforts to bury into her back. Jenna panted from pain, felt her skin tear open and instinctively threw herself onto her back. A wet splash rang through the noise, the stinger in her nape whipped around and set her nerves ablaze. She screamed again, reached over her shoulders and pulled at the horrible creature. With a sickening tearing sound it came loose, ripping skin and muscles open trying to cling its tentacles to her body. It burned like hell itself but she kept pulling!

Suddenly the Zar’tak was by her side and his darkness gradually subsided. His green glowing paws raced over her back, then he grabbed the tentacle with the stinger still embedded into her skin and pulled it out in a blink. Jenna’s eyes rolled back and she lost consciousness, but only for a second, before she threw her head to the side and puked on the floor. The pain was unbearable and she was already about to plunge into darkness again. Warm, leathery paws gently stroked her face, her arms and slowly lifted her up to pull her against a black frame.

    _“It’s over Jenna. It’s alright now…”_ Zar hushed her in her head, wrapping her agonized mind and body in a numb, gentle silence and allowed the sobbing human to sag against him. _“Take your time to rest. Let the Pakrit heal you. I stay with you.”_

    “How…” she breathed weakly, “how did you… survive… find me…” then the blackness of his arms seemed to stretch out until they filled her entire view and pulled her down into the darkness again.

 

Set saw the way Red and Purple both froze at the same time, as if lightning had struck them, and widened their eyes with a terrified expression. That offered him a brief moment to catch his breath and he finally got to cover behind one of the consoles.

The command center of the Tallest Tower was nearly destroyed from their vicious fight. Set had used his entire arsenal, even his rest of remote controlled bombs to try and defeat the Tallest but they were still standing, while the vast room had been reduced to a single arch of a wall, where the techs were still typing on their consoles, and the center of the upper floor with the elevator. Glass, debris and parts of their armor were strewn over the broken floor.

Red had recovered too quickly from the drug and now Set was obviously at a disadvantage. He was already bleeding from multiple wounds where Purple’s turret had gotten him or their spiderlegs. The cloaking shield of his armor was useless now that it had been damaged enough. But he wouldn’t give up now! Tork and the others had to be close, he had been able to catch a glimpse of the fights within the tower on one of the last screen at the other end of the room.

Red’s livid scream tore him back into the fight.

    “This can’t be happening! We had her! How did this lowlife get into the complex in the first place?!”

Purple hissed beside him and jerked his chin into Set’s direction.

    “They played us…”

The invader grinned, spitting blood onto the floor. “That’s right.” He smirked tauntingly. So the Zar’tak had successfully completed his part of the mission! He just hoped he had found Jenna in time before the scientists had been able to do something bad to her.

    “My Tallest! The rebels are advancing further!” one of the techs noted and Red shot him summarily without even looking at him. The other techs didn’t even flinch when the bleeding Irken slumped over his console.

    “If someone else feels the need to state the obvious: be my fucking _guest_.” The Tallest snarled and raised his arm. Set followed the motion warily and high on alert, watched as Red pushed a hidden button in his gauntlet and then started to shiver violently. His Pak suddenly began to glow, the red eyes seemed to be engulfed in flames and Purple nodded in approval.

    “Good idea, Red. Now let’s end him.” When Purple’s eyes gave off this eerie sheen as well he understood. Pakrit. He could have used it himself but he had the feeling that he would need it more for a second fight.

The Tallest lunged at him as one, much faster than before. He dodged the spiderlegs raining down on him but couldn’t counter any of them. One hit him, throwing him back against the wall with incredible force. Purple immediately chased after him, grabbed Set with his spiderlegs and hurled him across the entire room. He tried to roll but all of a sudden the ground just ended and he fell!

Instinctively he grabbed the splintered edge of the glass wall and the jolt that went through his good arm was enough to make him gasp. His own spiderlegs felt for the ledge to pull him up when Purple was over him again, closing his fist around the invader’s antennae. Set screamed in agony, his body unable to obey him as the Tallest pulled him up a bit by the sensitive organs. He only saw blurred flashes of light, his interface collapsed from all the alarms and his entire being was reduced to the pain in the crown of his head.

    “End it already! Kill him!” he heard Red shout from somewhere far away and noticed the light bouncing off a metal spiderleg in front of him. He had to react!

Without thinking about it he activated the crossbow with the Hallucinum and shot at Purple. The Tallest shrieked in surprise as the material covered his face, rendering him blind. Set pulled himself over the ledge as fast as he could, ignoring the warnings his Pak was sending, and focused the entire energy of his suit into his metal arm.

The last thing Purple saw was a frozen image of Set, pulling his arm back, then the titanium fist shattered his skull in a cloud of crimson blood.

Red howled in disbelieving rage as he saw  the head of his hatch twin explode. His spiderlegs vaulted him forward; with fingers bent into claws he lunged at the invader and threw him to the ground. Both opponents hissed and snarled, trying to get the upper hand in their struggle, their brains overwhelmed by a tidal wave of carnal rage and blood lust. Red rolled Set on his back, pinning his spiderlegs on the ground with his knees and wrapped his hands around his throat. Set tried to punch him, tried to pull his hands away but Red was way stronger and simply leaned a bit back, a diabolic, mad grin on his face.

    “First I kill you, then that black freak and then Jenna! I don’t care if the _Hive_ wants her of all humans!” his voice cracked from hate. “I’ll just get him a new human! Haha, yesss. But her, oooh I will tear. Her. Limb. From. Limb!” With each panted, clipped syllable he squeezed tighter. Set was on the brink to unconsciousness now, his hands feebly trying to fend off the Tallest; saliva and blood were running from his open mouth and he heard his own, frantic death rattle from far away.

No. He couldn’t die like this! He couldn’t fail now! He couldn’t let him kill Jenna! Jenna was all he had, all he would ever dare to hold dear! He suddenly remembered the night after he had mocked her into a fight with him. How she had manipulated him with her tiny hands so easily when he had tried to grab her, how she had used his own strength with mere lever rules against him…

He grabbed Red’s arms right above his gauntlets but instead of trying to push him away, he pulled the Tallest closer to him. The maniacal laugh died abruptly in his throat when his hands slipped off of Set’s neck. Set coughed, allowed himself to draw one deep breath before he shot up, his forehead crashing into Red’s face and he grabbed his head and threw the Tallest on his back, what wasn’t exactly easy with the gigantic Pak being in the way but he used his own body weight to pin him down.

With his teeth bared into a vicious snarl he adjusted his grip, pushing his thumbs over Red’s eyes and pushed. Pushed. _Pushed_!

Red shrieked beneath him, slashed at him with his barbed spiderlegs and frantically tried to grab Set’s face. The invader grunted indignantly, briefly let up on him and pierced Red’s shoulders with four of his spiderlegs to stop his flouncing. Then he jabbed his thumbs back into the Tallest’s eye sockets and growled satisfied when the blood started running and the tissue gave in.

    “You won’t lay a single finger on Jenna. Never again.” He hissed right next to the head of his former leader.

    “The _Hive_ … he is…” Red gurgled panicked, his impaled arms twitching in his death throes.

Set shook his head with a grim smile.

    “That won’t save you now. You will die right here.” With a last scream he freed his spiderlegs only to plunge them so deeply into Red’s chest armor that they pierced his Pak on the other side, sparks flying between their tips. Red groaned quietly, then his head sagged back and black blood ran from his mouth, pooling with that of his empty eye sockets.

Slowly Set came to his feet, staggering, and caught his breath. His eyes traveled from Red to Purple, convincing himself that he had really defeated these monster. At their consoles the techs were still typing.

It was over.  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *applauds* The evil has been defeated! *insert appropriate gif*  
> see you guys soon! Hope you're happy that no one died :D YAAY


	111. Paks

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [C U R I O S I T Y Twitter](https://twitter.com/CURIOSITYupdate)   
>  [C U R I O S I T Y playlists on Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/user/thetruemek)

###  **\- 36 Paks –**

 

_Ten minutes later – 137 days and 17 hours after abduction – Irk – Tallest Tower_

    “Alright I think that was the last one of those sons of bitches!” Tork called out over the gradually subsiding din and lifted his boot from the chest of the Enforcer he had just killed. The Commander was breathing heavily and wiped his sweaty, blood-smeared forehead with the back of his hand. The giant, mute Irken had fought like a madman and had been, fortunately enough, his one and only opponent in this fight.

Ink, one half of his right hand, was immediately by his side, sheathing his ionized blades, but Tork shook his head dismissively and only allowed his bodyguard to help him strap the giant railgun he had used to kill the Enforcer on his back. While he had been driven to the absolute limits of his physical breaking point he wouldn’t kick the bucket right here, spirits be damned! Not now!

As if summoned by a silent command, or his sixth sense, Nemon stepped up to him as well and examined him thoroughly. Tork growled reluctantly, quickly putting him off and turning away to analyze the situation at hand. While the transporter’s explosion had gratefully spared them any losses, the fight against the hundreds of Enforcers and elite soldiers hadn’t ended quite as leniently. In a wink, he had made a rough estimate of the fallen rebels he was able to recognize as definitely dead right away. They had lost almost half of the stealth team already. He barely stifled a curse.

    “Have them report to you and enumerate,” he ordered Ink and the black Vortian nodded in his silence before he disappeared from his side without a noise, “you got ten minutes, then we head out! Secure the perimeter if you’re not injured! Report to doctor Nemon in case you are!” he added, louder, for everyone to hear him and then quickly walked up to the blasted elevator which those Enforcers had been so hellbent on defending. He had picked up enough of Irken script over his years as a captain to know that it was the elevator to the command center. Korr, the Prerk, joined him, clacking his mandibles together in excitement.

The brawny Prerk warrior hadn’t gotten off scot-free either: he was bleeding from multiple wounds where the Enforcers’ long armor-blades had slashed him in close combat and one of his wings had been torn to shreds completely. Still, he held himself upright as if he didn’t even feel his injuries.

    “Tallesssst up there, yesss? Invader kill them?” he wanted to know and Tork whipped out his Chronometer. Frowning, he realized that neither Set nor the Zar’tak had made any calls up until now.

    “Let’s hope so…” he muttered lost in thoughts and turned to one of the Lieutenants on the scene who was not in immediate need of Nemon’s care. “Try to get a hold of Lieutenant Commander Set and the Zar’tak. I need their status reports _yesterday_!” he commanded the Vortian and waved at Korr to help him with the elevator doors. 

   
  


Set jerked up when he noticed the whistling of his communicator, sounding fuzzy in his abused antennae, and shook his head, numbed, before instinctively checking his surroundings. He had only decided to rest against the remaining wall to catch his breath for a second and apparently fallen asleep on the spot. Although he tried to tell himself that he had actually lost his consciousness due to exhaustion from the fight. He felt like a damn rookie!

Quickly he made sure that the two Tallest were still lying dead in the rubble of their former command center; then he finally took the call and shot a glimpse over to the techs that were apparently still rooted to their seats. Shit, one of them could’ve easily shot him in his sleep from that distance!

    “Yes.” He just said and tried to send feeling into his aching, protesting limbs. How long had he been out for? What had happened to Jenna?!

    “Ah, Lieutenant Commander! I’ll put you through to the Commander.” A Vortian voice piped up and not a second later Set heard muffled cursing and then Tork’s angry growl: “Where the hell are you?!”

Set ground his teeth in shame.

    “Apologies, Commander, I… the Tallest are dead. Mission accomplished.” He finally answered curtly and picked up loud cheering in the back out of multiple throats before Tork could call his men to order.

    “Damn good job, Set. Is this blasted elevator still working?”

Hissing, the Irken rose from his spot and dragged himself over to the cylindrical elevator shaft that had been, surprisingly enough, spared from the fight. He had busted the doors himself yet the electric was fried, probably from one of the explosions on the roof or because the Irken techs had shut it down. He shook his head.

    “Negative, Commander. Send SIR up with a rope so you can climb up to me.” He said exhausted and flinched when the wounds he had sustained made themselves felt again. He would have to look for an Irken MedBay on their way to the _Hive_ first if he wanted to be of any real help in a second fight.

    “Understood. Nemon and the Prerk captain will accompany me so I can get an idea of the situation myself and have you patched up. I don’t assume that Jenna is still somewhere up there as well?”

The thought of Jenna caused a way more painful sting in Set’s body than all his wounds combined. His voice was hoarse from self-loathing when he answered Tork: “No… she’s not, Commander. I don’t know where they took her.”

Tork just grunted and the call was ended. Set stayed in front of the dark elevator shaft and stared down into the depth. He knew that Jenna was out of danger by now; the Tallest had given it away themselves with their reaction unmistakably. He said it over and over in his mind: she’s out of danger, nothing can happen to her now.

But what had perhaps already happened to her? Even if the Zar’tak had been quick enough to find her in time, he wasn’t sure if she would forgive him his actions. Ever. Set didn’t notice how he started to tremble.

Suddenly a loud hissing erupted from the elevator shaft and not half a minute later he spotted SIR racing straight at him, pulling a long, sturdy metal cable up with him. His trusty robot assistant touched down next to him, saluting sharply and with his metal chest sticking out, swollen with pride. After receiving an acknowledging nod from his master the SIR unit spun on its heels, quickly marching off to secure the rope. Set regarded SIR with a little smile. But it vanished the second he heard the cable tauten and then the zooming sound of the accelerating carrier sleds with which Tork, Nemon and at least two more rebels climbed up the metal rope.

Quickly he squared his broad shoulders and tried to mask the pain in his body, but most of all his insecurity about the inevitable confrontation with Jenna, when the Commander already shot over the edge of the elevator shaft and nimbly detached from the railing system. Nemon and Korr followed close behind him, as did Ink and Ironhead what Set could have guessed just as well; ever since Tork’s heart attack the two bodyguards rarely left him out of sight for more than two seconds.

Tork’s maroon eyes scrutinized Set from head to toe and he scrunched up the area around his mouth in a lopsided sneer.

    “Hell, they messed you up pretty good.” He commented, snorting, and Set relaxed a little at his Commander’s grim sense of mirth. He inclined his head invitingly towards the command center, or what had survived his fight with the Tallest, and Tork followed him.

    “How many did you loose?” the invader asked and heard his Commander sigh exasperated.

    “Too many… I don’t know if we can afford to spare some of the remaining for the fight against the _Hive_ if we’re supposed to keep an escape route open at the same time…”

Tork had probably meant to say more, but in that moment they entered the room and he froze. With eyes wide he beheld the chaos and destruction and immediately found the two giant corpses. Ink and Ironhead - having followed them with barely any noise - readied their weapons at once and pointed them at the very alive techs in the back. Set put them off.

    “Leave them be. They could have easily killed me when I was resting my eyes but I think they aren’t even physically _able_ to rise from their seats.” He explained and received an askew side glance from Tork.

    “Well, well… resting your _eyes_ , eh?” But then he gave a bleating laugh and took a few, cautious steps towards the Tallest. He whistled through sharp teeth. “Well I’ll be…” he stepped closer, closely followed by Ink and Ironhead. Set stopped in his own steps and immediately felt Nemon’s deft hands on his armor, signaling him with an impatient knock that he was supposed to pretty please get rid off the darn thing for once so he could examine his injuries properly. The Irken did as he was told and even sank down on the remains of a crumbled wall so the much smaller Ilenian could provisionally patch him up from head to toe.

    “How… how did Jenna react when you…” Nemon didn’t say ‘When you betrayed her’ but Set could well hear it in the silence that followed. The long antennae, still throbbing in pain, laid themselves onto the back of his head, betraying the guilt he was trying to hide, and he shook his head, lips pressed into a harsh line.

    “I’m… not sure that she will ever…” he began quietly but in this second the Prerk stepped up next to him and Set fell silent in an instant. A reflexive growl rose up from his chest. But the Prerk captain didn’t mind Set’s hostility. He just stared at the dead Tallest with his mouth open (at least he thought so, the sharp mandibles were standing almost a foot apart) and then sank down before him on one knee, his head deeply bowed in submission.

    “Invader mightiessssst warrior. Your victory fillssss me with pride and hope. Prerk will alwaysss follow your call. Queen thank you. Hive thank you.” He proclaimed fervently and bowed once more before Set whose eyes had widened in bafflement. Nemon hummed at his side and closed another wound on his shoulder with his pocket laser, waving away the smoke that rose from his scorched flesh with the other hand.

    “We are all in your debt Set. You took all of this upon yourself… without you and your abilities we wouldn’t even be here.” The Ilenian spoke calm and softly, as though he didn’t want to praise Set’s victory as much as to console him.

Suddenly they heard Tork curse wildly and Set was on his feet immediately; in sickening disbelief he watched how Purple’s corpse moved around, his lifeless body twitching and jerking as if… yes, as if his Pak was trying to revive the fallen Tallest! The sharp snap of multiple weapons being readied reached his antennae and before he realized it fully, he had ejected all spiderlegs from his Pak himself, ready to fight an undead Tallest, or two, as well.

    “Spirits almighty…” Tork gasped out and pointed at Red, whose sparking Pak had come to new life as well.

Frozen in utter horror but also fascination the rebels observed the gruesome happenings: the wispy frames of the Tallest seemed to shrink, their bony bodies became even thinner and while the bulky armor hid most from their eyes they saw it on their naked arms and heads, least with Red.

    “The Paks…” Nemon breathed suddenly. Set nodded, stunned. The massive, round Paks of the Tallest crunched and snapped as they slowly grew even bigger while the bodies they once belonged to shrunk until the pale green skin was stretched taut over their bones.

    “They’re sucking them up.” Set realized.

Korr snarled loudly in disgust. Tensed, they all waited for what would happen next; Set already braced himself in the event that the Paks might detonate. In normal invaders and soldiers the self-destruction of a Pak after the death of its carrier was preprogrammed so that they and the data within them wouldn’t fall into enemy hands. And if you considered the sheer size of his leaders’ Paks…

He was just about to warn the others when a high hiss sounded and the bloated Paks separated from the corpses with a soft clicking, retracting the anchors with which they had been connected to their hosts into their bellies. Slowly and sluggishly they floated a bit higher, their middle plate giving of a flash of pink light, and Purple’s Pak was the first to move. Target-oriented it raced in a wide arch over their heads and down into the city. Red’s Pak however had trouble keeping itself in the air, probably because Set had damaged it too severely with his paklegs, and wobbled towards them. Following a sudden intuition, the invader used his spiderlegs to vault himself up and grab the giant object. Tork seemed to sense what he had in mind and barked an order at Ironhead who grabbed Set’s legs lickety-split and clung to the Irken with his entire weight of almost two tons.

Set groaned as the bulky Steelhunter pulled on him but kept clutching Red’s Pak with arms and spiderlegs alike, taking a tracking device from the utility compartment of his suit. Swiftly, he fastened the flashing tracker to the Pak with its magnets and let go of the floating Pak. Immediately the giant sphere raced after its companion.

The rebels and Set all rushed to the other end of the command center and peered down the tower. The Paks were bearing down on a flat, inconspicuous looking building a few leagues south of the Tallest Tower before they vanished from their view. Tork gave Set an expectant look and he ejected the transponder from his Pak. The tracking device noted that the Paks were moving deeper beneath the planet’s surface.

    “What the hell was that all about?” Tork asked, exhaling his held breath. Set just shrugged.

    “Beats me. But I kinda get the feeling they’re being called back by their true master.”

As if that had been a secret cue, both Ink’s Chronometer and Set’s transponder gave a ring.

    “SIR, it’s the telepath.” The other Vortian informed them, handing the Commander his Chronometer while Set took a relieved breath: “Jenna’s suit has been re-activated. I can track it now.”

Tork was still wondering how the silent Zar’tak was supposed to talk to him over the comm. and already expected Jenna to answer for him, when the call was already ended. He stared down at the silent device, flabbergasted, and then looked up to Set.

    “Looks like the Zar’tak wanted to point us towards his location. The Nexuslab, I assume.” The Irken said and showed Tork the display of his transponder. The signal from Red’s Pak and that of Jenna’s suit were too close together to be mere coincidence.

    “I’ll be damned…” Tork growled. “Alright, then let’s get going.”

   
  


The Zar’tak put the Chronometer that now was no longer of any use to him back into the pocket of his overall and turned back around towards the unconscious Jenna. Although… by now she was more asleep than really unconscious as he noted relieved. A rather restless sleep, however, that he could only shield from the mental attacks of the _Hive_ with violent effort, but at least it allowed the remaining Pakrit in her body to heal her. The Zar’tak caught himself hoping that it might not only heal her physical wounds but those of her mind as well before Set would arrive.

One of his pairs of eyes quickly darted down to the see-through… thing he had smashed with his foot after tearing it from Jenna’s back. Now it was just a grayish, gelatinous, and most importantly _dead_ , mass on the ground but the fact alone that something like it even existed and he had no idea what the hell it was caused an ice cold shiver to run down his spine.

His eyes raised their look up towards the back end of the lab, where countless life forms were entrapped in Irken collection tubes. There were some he had only heard of from his sovereign but he was glad to not find any of his kind among them. Though he had no idea whether this was the only bio-storage of the lab or not. So his sovereign and their kind had been right about the Irkens conducting secret experiments on other life forms. Secret and _brutal_ experiments no doubt.

Suddenly Jenna stirred and he was immediately at her side, hands halfway reaching out for her but she managed to sit up without his help, rubbing her head with a groan. Confused she looked around and then winced when she realized that she was still lying on the operation table!

Auguring her mental turmoil he was next to her before she could fall off the table in her panic and gently placed his hands on her arms. He felt like a complete fool for the warm feeling that flared up inside him when she calmed down just from his touch alone and quickly banished the thought into the backmost part of his mind. 

Jenna clutched his arms frantically, her eyes widened all the way and her chest heaving quickly from her ragged breaths. Carefully the Zar’tak freed his arms from her grasp to help her slip into the sleeves of her overall and wrap the heavy belt of her armor around her hips, which she thanked him with a shaking nod, before her eyes scanned the vast laboratory and she relaxed even more once she saw the mangled bodies of the Enforcers and scientists. He found this a tad concerning but her reaction was more than understandable given her state of mind and what she had endured.

    “How… how did you find me?” she finally asked, her voice still a bit shaky but at least not as feeble anymore. The Zar’tak cocked his head to one side and opened his jaws into a smile.

    _“The same way I always do, Jenna.”_ He said softly and that made her smile back at him. But then her look turned serious, angry even, and she sat up.

    “Zar, you don’t understand what’s happened, Set betrayed us! He betrayed us all! He placed…”

    _“A bomb inside the transporter and detonated it, yes. On Commander Tork’s orders.”_ He explained to her, still gentle and calm, yet he focused with every fiber of his being on the fluctuations within her emotions to detect any sign of mental instability. But he sensed only confusion, slowly cooling down Jenna’s hot rage. Though it didn’t vanish completely.

    “What are you saying? Why would Tork-“, disbelief in her voice; to her it was still much more likely for the Irken to have betrayed her than the possibility that the entire course of their attack could have been staged by them from start to finish without letting her in on it. He recognized the dangerous potential of this revelation and continued with respective caution: _“Jenna, listen to me. The Tallest would have never allowed Set to enter the tower without you. Do you understand?”_

She shook her head indignantly, crossing her arms in front of her chest as if to shield herself.

    “What’s going on, why are you changing the subject?! Set only took me with him to hand me in to these monsters! All he ever wanted was his old rank back! I never truly meant something to him!”

He saw the tears in her eyes and wished fervently that his sovereign could be here to help him find the right words. He huffed quietly.

    _“Jenna… do you really think I wouldn’t have noticed it if Set had planned something like this? I sensed the assassin’s intention to shoot you even when I was at my lowest level of power. If Set had really meant to kill all of us in that explosion and separate you from us in the process, don’t you think I would have stopped him before he had even gotten the chance to place the bomb?”_

Her furrowed brows smoothed a little. To his utter relief she nodded slowly.

    “So… that was their plan all along. Tork’s and Set’s. I _knew_ they were secretly plotting something! But why… why so…” she paused and looked up to him, seeking help.

    _“Why would they suddenly put you in this much danger, you mean? Why risk that the_ Hive _might get you in the end despite all we’ve tried to prevent just that?”_ He waited for a moment to anticipate her reaction but could only sense static around her. Jenna was unpredictable in this moment, her reactions could easily go into each possible direction. He would just have to risk it. _“It was… a calculated risk, so to say…_ my _calculated risk. I played out so many possible scenarios in my mind until I found one that promised a slightly bigger chance on our success. Please don’t ask me for the exact percentage, it was reckless enough to begin with.”_

Jenna just stared at him. Then she took a sudden breath and paused once more, her eyes lowering onto her own hands in concentration.

    “Hold on a second. Does that mean… that everything that happened after our departure from the _Vengeance_ – the explosion, Set’s betrayal, and you showing up here to save me… that was all _planned_?! And you all knew? Even Nemon?!” She had gotten louder with each sentence and raised herself up on her knees to better look him in the eyes. The Zar’tak held her furious glare bravely but he wasn’t sure whether he should be glad that the Pakrit had burned itself out by now or not. Maybe she would have been more open for the idea of a staged surrender by Set with a little more Pakrit to expand her horizon.

    “You just used me like a pawn…” Jenna muttered hurt and sank down on her heels again, her eyes searching the big room aimlessly. “To find this? Did you think they would take me straight to the _Hive_? So you could learn where he was hiding?” she wanted to know and Zar nodded slowly in response.

    _“Jenna… I’m so sorry that you had to go through all this, again. But there was no other way to make this work. We-“ –_ “Was it your idea?” she suddenly interrupted him, the anger flaring up inside her again. He didn’t dare to inquire. Jenna repeated the question, brisker: “Was it _your_ idea to remove the Pakrit from my armor, Zar?!”

He nodded, guilt-ridden. Jenna snorted a cold laugh. “Of course it was…” then she drew her knees to her chest and made herself smaller, her face turned away from him.

    _“Jenna?”_ he started carefully, worried, but she shook off the hand he wanted to place on her shoulder.

    “I _understand_ why you did it. All of it. Leaving me in the dark. Not asking me for my opinion on this plan. I admit, I wouldn’t have been able to play it even remotely as convincing if I had known beforehand. But what I don’t get is why you didn’t trust in me! Why you didn’t trust me that I could defeat both the Tallest and find the _Hive_ with my powers! God dammit, Zar!” she uttered strained and wheeled around to him, propping one hand on the table and pressing the other flat on her chest to stress her words: “I would have torn this entire city to shreds with my powers to find him! Or better yet: I’m pretty _sure_ I would have been able to blow up this whole planet with the right amount of Pakrit!”

He didn’t know what to reply to that. They had argued about it. Even during the actual war council that Jenna had left so hot-headedly. The queen of the Prerk, much like Set, had at first been strictly against the idea of putting Jenna into any kind of danger but in the end they had both realized that this plan had its advantages and was near to infallible, if executed correctly, since it aimed at the hauteur and arrogance of the Tallest.

So in the end, both of them had finally agreed to the plan and the Prerk queen herself had even disclosed the formula for the drug known as Black Hole to Reliat over the comm, who had nearly fainted from reverence, so that Set might use it against the Tallest.

But it was also true that they had left the staggering improvement of Jenna’s abilities with the Pakrit out of consideration. What had to be accredited mostly to Tork and Set, who both had been in agreement about that the _Hive_ could likely be able to manipulate Jenna in some way should she get close enough to him with a sufficient amount of the still mysterious liquid inside her body. Which was why they had agreed on taking the syringe with Pakrit from Jenna in an opportune moment.

As a matter of fact he still had the syringe in his possession right now. Set might have had told her that it had been him who had taken the Pakrit away from her but in reality it had happened even before their departure, when the Zar’tak had inspected Jenna’s suit, in case there wouldn’t be an opportune moment for Set to remove the syringe from her armor without making Jenna suspicious. Now the syringe was pressing against his body like a burning hot piece of iron and he sighed.

Before he could come up with something to say, to maybe placate her or even defend their actions, she pointed at the grayish mass next to the operation table with her chin.

    “He called it a protoform.” She stated voicelessly but he noticed the trembling that took hold of her body. Despite his feelings of guilt the Zar’tak felt curious at her words. A part of that curiosity, that he was sure of, seemed to stem from the part of his sovereign’s energy that was still coursing through his body.

    _“The protoform of a Pak?_ ” he asked, though it couldn’t be much else than a Pak. The way the amoeba-like thing had been perched on Jenna’s back, the pellucid tentacles deeply buried in her flesh and her nape… he shuddered at the memory and involuntarily wondered what might have happened if he hadn’t found her in time.

Jenna nodded. “He said that I, well, we humans, were his next host; the next best conjunction after the Irkens. He’s searching for a better host, Zar. All those galaxies he destroyed before he got here? They were all just serving his means to find a better… connection. But I don’t think that there’s really _the_ perfect host out there for him. He is like a plague that has mutated so many times over that it can’t even recognize its true host anymore.” She was barely whispering now and he finally placed his hands back on her shoulders. This time she didn’t shake him off and just took a shaking breath, quickly averting her eyes from the dead protoform, blinking rapidly.

“This was supposed to become my own Pak, though he said that it was _him_ I’d be bearing to get humankind to…” she faltered and swallowed to get her composure back. Her big, green eyes pierced into his.

    “We have to stop him, Zar.” She breathed haunted. The Zar’tak nodded solemnly.

    _“And we will, I promise.”_

  
  


They waited silently for the rebels to find them when suddenly a loud din erupted from beyond the lab’s heavy double doors. Without thinking twice Jenna activated her suit and jumped off the table, ready to join the fight. The Zar’tak wrapped a paw around her shoulder to hold her back. She all but shook him off again to throw herself out there but could control herself after all. Though she would have loved nothing more than wreak all her anger on someone else, preferably another Enforcer, to feel better. She also would have loved to have killed the scientists herself that had done this to her!

 _It’s not their fault. They are all like zombies, like SIR units, only able to execute their master’s command,_ an inner voice reminded her and she could have sworn it sounded like Ria’s. Jenna lowered her clenched fists and forced herself to breathe calmly. Of course she was frustrated and hurt and wanted nothing more than revenge but she always had to remind herself who the real enemy was in all of this. Only this way of thinking had first enabled her to see Set as something more than the monster everyone else took him for.

The screams and sounds of gunfire suddenly stopped. Not a minute later the door to the lab opened and let the Resistance’s stealth team enter, lead by Tork in the very flesh who was spattered with Irken blood from head to toe just like his men. She quickly realized that a majority of the team was missing and it stung in her chest. Had they died during the explosion? Or while trying to fight their way towards the Tower?

Quickly she looked for Nemon’s face and exhaled hard when she finally spotted him. The lean Ilenian immediately made a mad dash for her and wrapped his arms around her. His one hand buried in her short hair when he drew her head against his chest and she had to swallow the lump in her throat again to catch herself.

    “Thank the Goddess you’re safe! Oh Jenna I’m so sorry, I never should have… we…” he was stammering and she heard the guilt in his voice what immediately gave her a bad conscience for flipping out like that earlier. Of course they’ve had only kept her in the dark with a heavy heart and didn’t happily send her on her way all alone into a danger they had no influence on whatsoever. She shook her head in Nemon’s tight embrace.

    “Don’t, Nemon. It’s alright. I’m fine.” She murmured back and heard him laugh out in relief.

    “Of course. Of course you’re fine.” He sniffled restrained and still got to examine her, out of pure habit, although she knew that the Pakrit had already healed her wounds. The only thing it hadn’t been able to do was remove the feeling of the stinger she could still sense inside her nape. But when she asked Nemon to check he couldn’t find a thing. Then he stepped aside and Jenna saw Tork marching up to her, a lot more composed than his Chief Medical Officer but not any less relieved.

A meter away from her he stopped and suddenly hesitated, his red eyes quickly traveling over her to get an idea of her condition. Then he darted forward and hugged her as well.

    “Kid… Jenna, can you forgive an old fool?” he asked hoarsely and she nodded silently before she freed herself with gentle force and gave him a piercing glare.

    “But what I can’t forgive is that you had no trust in my powers, Tork. You out of all people should know by now what I can do.” She told him quietly, too quiet for the surrounding rebels to understand it but pointedly enough so he could hear the smoldering fury in her voice. Now it was Tork who could only nod and then had to avert his eyes.

    “An inexcusable fault, I admit it.” He said just as quietly and then let go off her.

Jenna raised her gaze, just in time to see Set push through the guarding soldiers by the door and look at her. Their tensed silence was almost touchable and the presence of the other rebels left no room for a more private heart-to-heart talk for now. For _now_. But Set saw in the combative flash in her eyes that he wouldn’t be able to escape a proper verbal (and maybe even mental) beating. He sighed internally, fully aware of his deserving.

Tork interrupted their silent duel by gathering them all around the operation table and brief them.

    “Alright, kids, I want you to listen up! Set might have successfully killed off the Tallest but there are some concerning developments regarding them.” He started and the rest of the group muttered worried, while Korr and Nemon just nodded sternly.

While Tork explained to them what had happened, Jenna shot Set a quick glimpse that soon turned into a thorough scrutinizing. At first she hadn’t really noticed it, maybe hadn’t even wanted to notice, but he was looking like the Tallest had thrown him into a blender covered in barbed wire and pushed the button for “Green Smoothie”. He had baulked against the idea of her fighting the Tallest and now she began to understand why.

Even for her Pakrit-boosted self it had still been a challenge to defeat Set in a one on one fight. She trembled when she now tried to imagine how in the world he had been able to win a fight against those two monsters, though the crimson blood that covered both his hands like a thick layer of paint gave her a pretty good idea.

She quickly focused back on Tork’s briefing.

    “According to our data the Paks of the Tallest are somewhere within this complex. Set?” he waved his hand towards the table and his SIC nodded affirming. On his command SIR jumped onto the table and projected something into the air. It was a schematic of the complex and its lower floors where the Nexuslab was situated. Deeper, way deeper still and even further away from the actual center of the capitol ran an extensive network with multiple chambers that finally ended in an incredibly huge hangar.

    “What’s down there?” one of the Vortian lieutenants demanded to know. Set rubbed his chin before giving him an answer: “According to our official data, that being my own and that from SIR’s recon missions on the surface and inside the archive’s of the city, it’s an underground breeding facility,” he circled the part with the bigger chambers, “and an adjacent hangar for the _Massive_ itself.”

They all stared at the flashing dot in one corner of the hangar that had stopped moving a while ago.

    “Well it’s certainly _big_ enough.” Tork said with a growl and gave each of his men a stern nod. “We cannot risk losing a possible escape route. Ink, Ironhead: I want you to stay here with the rest of the team and set up a sturdy defense point. Nemon, Korr: you will come with us. A small team has better chances to stay under their radar and we will probably need medical assistance sure enough. I’m afraid our possibilities to communicate will be limited this deep beneath the surface which is why we will have a time period of six Ti after the last contact to operate. If we haven’t returned after those six Ti, or nothing epic has happened until then, your orders are to hail the _Vengeance_ and the queen to lay this entire area to waste with everything they got, understood? I don’t want even a single atom of the _Hive_ to survive!”

The soldiers all nodded in grim determination and some saluted their Commander. Ink and Ironhead looked downright shaken and for a moment it seemed as if they were about to stage protest, but the piercing, unyielding glare Tork regarded them with made them snap to attention.

    “Good luck… Commander Tork.” Ink said and Ironhead turned away and stomped back towards the doors, barking orders to the rebels and how they were to position their forces outside the entrance to the complex. Meanwhile Tork had already turned towards Jenna.

    “Before we head out, I need to know what they did to you, what else they were doing in here, everything you might have observed, and I mean _everything_. Can you do that Jenna?”

She took a deep breath, swallowing since her mouth felt terribly dry all of a sudden but then she nodded and told them in every little detail what had taken place after Set had handed her over to the Tallest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Suuuuper early update you guys because I love you and I'm aching to finish this without another hiatus uuuughhh  
> I actually blame my new diet/life choices for my gosh-diddly-darn energy and motivation! You should give it a try! The secret? No.more.sugar. Like, at all! No refined carbs, no sweets, no nothing- I lost 7 kilos in barely 2 months and I feel amazing! 
> 
> eh enough advertising ^^; hope you like the recent developments and are hungry for moar *Q*


	112. Paks - Pt. 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [C U R I O S I T Y Twitter](https://twitter.com/CURIOSITYupdate)   
>  [C U R I O S I T Y playlists on Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/user/thetruemek)

###  **\- 36 Paks –**

******Part 2  
**

_Irk - Nexuslab_  
  
  
  
While Jenna explained to Tork and the others what had happened before the Zar’tak had rescued her, and Set busied himself with finally getting the explosive collar off her neck, and probably to have an excuse to be close to her, the telepath looked around the back part of the giant lab and slowly wandered further towards the backmost wall where the countless collection tubes were stacked.

His gaze fell on all the cruel machines with which the Irken scientists had tortured and dismantled their test subjects, most of them still covered in the crusted remains of a decade’s worth of blood. Once more he felt a huge wave of relief that apparently none of his kind had been captured for just those tests. Although…

The Zar’tak cocked his head in curiosity when his upper pair of eyes found the half hidden door in a corner beside the glass tubes and he extended a mental feeler to investigate who or what was behind it.

Before his inner eye another big, dark room opened up; with single test tubes and multiple monitors. A rather specialized laboratory it would seem. He looked around more, while his physical body stopped in front of the door and froze. Then he saw them.

Jenna heard the sharp inhale coming from the Zar’tak and she paused in her narration, just as she described how he had found her and freed her from the protoform’s stinger. They all turned towards the back part of the lab, alarmed, and Set already moved in front of Jenna with a warning hiss. But before she could even cast him a crushing glare, the black alien had already teleported back to them.

She saw immediately that something was wrong and stepped around Set towards him. The billowing black skin barely came to a rest as he looked down on her with wide opened eyes, pure horror on his reptilian features. Jenna’s stomach suddenly dropped.

    “What? What did you find?” she asked quietly, her voice sounding hollow, and saw the way he briefly hesitated. “Zar…” she added exasperated, her patience more than worked thin by now. So he nodded towards the door that was still locked.

     _“I… I do believe I know now why the_ Hive _wants you of all humans.”_ His mental voice was not more than a haunted whisper in their heads and Nemon groaned agonized. Tork just growled angrily.

    “Show us.” The Commander demanded and was already walking towards the door, determined, Jenna close behind him before Set could stop her. They all had a hunch what they would find behind that door but they still had to see it with their own eyes to really believe it.

Set used the raw strength of his spiderlegs to pry the door open and lifted his rifle as he entered and swiped the room. But the lab was neither secured nor guarded. It was dark and abandoned; the only light coming from the few screens at one side of the room. Their red light dimly illuminated the five collection tubes at the other end. When Jenna’s eyes had adjusted to the twilight she clasped a hand over her mouth in start.

For a horrible, shameful moment she felt glad, glad not to find anyone of her family or friends among the test subjects. Three women and two men, roughly around the ages of 17 to 40, were stuck in the glass tanks. There was no doubt that they had died a long time ago; their bodies, trapped in the preservative liquid, were white, exsanguinated, and yet their dull eyes were torn open, their faces so distorted by agony even in death that you could well imagine how painful and cruel their last moments must have had been.

Jenna forced herself to approach the glass tubes even though Set and Nemon both uttered a shocked gasp. Her eyes were steadily fixed on the pale, see-through creatures clutching the dead humans. They didn’t stir either, which was a relief in itself. The Pak-protoforms had virtually grown together with the bodies of their hosts, the thin tentacles halfway buried in the skin of their victims. Jenna looked away in disgust. Would the same fate have befallen her if the Zar’tak had failed to find her in time?

    “The first of these… humans was brought here more than 100 cycles ago.” Set explained quietly into the shocked silence. He had walked to one of the screens and was running a finger along the last lines of the scientist’s log. “Probably right after the Tallest’s spy had failed to capture Jenna on the Resistance planet. They injected them with Pakrit and attached the protoforms but as soon as they had connected to their hosts… both died.” He turned to face the others. Korr was clacking his mandibles in voiceless horror.

    “Irken dogssss… ssssteal Warriorsss and other aliensss from their nesssstsss for experimentssss. For torture and deathhh.” He cursed muffled in his language and stormed out of the lab, too rattled by their terrible find. Jenna had found her voice again as well:

    “Something… something really  _has_  to be different about me then.” She deduced quietly and exchanged a thoughtful glance with Set. He looked her in the eyes and his antennae slowly rose in realization as he figured out what had to be the reason for Jenna’s uniqueness.

    “Of course…” he mumbled and pointed at the log. “The scientists describe that the test-, the  _humans_ ,” he quickly corrected himself, flinching guiltily, “didn’t react to the Pakrit the way you do. They didn’t test the Pakrit on them beforehand, and when they ran the experiment on them, they couldn’t handle the energy set free by the Pakrit. It… it probably tore them apart from the inside. The protoforms got fried in the process. And Jenna-“

    “Jenna is the only human who can use it because she had learned how to use it a long time ago and under completely different circumstances.” Nemon finished the sentence, but Set shook his head, placing his metal hand on his chest plate.

    “It’s not just that. Since I-, since I took Jenna from Earth, I treated her with medication that was based on Pakrit. You must’ve developed a natural tolerance for it over time… otherwise you probably wouldn’t even have survived drinking Ria’s Pakrit.”

Jenna looked back over her shoulder, regarding the dead humans. All this time since her abduction she had tried to protect humanity from the Irkens. And now it turned out she had already been too late. Shaking her head, she squared her shoulders.

    “We have to keep going. The faster we find the  _Hive_  the sooner we’ll get our answers. There’s still a battle raging on up there. We don’t have time to stand around and make guesses!”

Tork gave an affirming grunt.

    “Jenna’s right. Let’s go. There’s nothing we can do for them and the rest of the Resistance is counting on us to end this war.”

   
  


They left the laboratories and headed for the tunnel connecting the Nexuslab with the breeding facility and, ultimately, the  _Massive_ ’s hangar. The corridor ahead was wide, wide enough to let vehicles pass through. They had to use the night vision modules of their visors to find their way through the dark tunnel. When Set took the lead to scout the way ahead, Tork radioed his two body guards: “Ink, Ironhead, we’re entering the tunnel system. As soon as we fail to answer your calls, you start the countdown.”

Jenna only noticed their answer marginally; she was walking next to Zar, her gaze resting on Set’s armored back and his Pak. His suit was covered in dents and scratches and multiple parts of the sturdy armor had apparently gotten torn or shot off. Beneath the holes in his defense she could see the dried blood staining his overall.  Now that did dampen her smoldering fury a little and she huffed a quiet, frustrated sigh.

     _“You should still talk to him.”_  Zar noted, on a private mental channel, and she screwed her face. She wasn’t sure if she wanted to talk to Set or yell at him. Without waiting for an answer, Zar suddenly closed up on Set and in the way his antennae jerked back Jenna knew he was talking to him. When the ex-invader shot a glimpse towards her over his shoulder, she knew it was about her and she cursed under her breath. After a moment, Set finally nodded and fell back, handing Zar his rifle to take the lead while he walked slower until he was right next to her.

Set’s metallic hand found hers and held it tightly, forcing her to walk even slower until they had fallen a good bit behind Tork, Nemon and Korr. Nemon gave the Irken another sympathetic smile before he caught up with the others again.

They walked beside each other in silence for a while. Then Jenna exhaled audibly, pointedly freeing her hand from his fingers.

    “Jenna, I…” Set quietly began in her language but he fell silent in an instant when she raised her hand and averted her gaze, her mouth pressed into a harsh line.

    “You… you have no idea… how hard I’m trying not to bitch you out!” she hissed suppressed and lowered her flat hand again. From the corners of her eyes she saw him nod at that.

    “And that’s more than I deserve, really.” He admitted downcast. “I lied to you… again. On multiple occasions. Even before the attack. I…” he sighed, more a quiet, pained groan, “I betrayed you, left you alone to your worst nightmare and I… abandoned you with that fear.” His laugh was bitter. “But please don’t think I did it light-heartedly.”

    “You don’t even have a heart.” She reminded him snappishly. Suddenly she felt childish and sulky. Here she was, blaming him and making a scene even though she knew well enough how hard it must’ve been for him to do just one of those things. He had even been against this plan in the beginning. But she  _was_  hurt and she wanted - needed - to give way to all her anger, her fear and frustration from being betrayed, from being played like a pawn by everyone else, including him. Her own fiancé whom she had trusted!

    “Don’t do that. Please.” Set whispered throatily, so honestly hurt that it only fed the bad conscience she had. “I’m so, so sorry for what I did to you, Jenna. Everything. You don’t deserve to get fooled like that, to be treated like another gaming piece in this war.” Again he reached for her hand and again she tried to slip out of his grasp but Set simply picked her up and pulled her towards him. Without Pakrit Jenna couldn’t do much against it and she didn’t want to scream in front of the others, why she eventually stopped kicking and just turned her head so far away from him that he couldn’t get to her.

Set just held her tight against his chest plate and buried one hand in her short hair.

    “I would’ve taken your place if it had been an option.” He murmured into her ear. “Without a second thought. I would’ve rather faced them alone than leaving you in danger for one second. I wish I could undo all of this. The last few hours. I wish I never agreed to this plan.”

Jenna listened silently to his rant, trapped between his arms, and caught herself hopefully waiting for more.

    “You had no trust in me as well. You also thought I couldn’t do it.” She muttered disappointed and felt how he shook his head next to her cheek.

    “I  _feared_  for you. Feared what might become of you. Do you remember how I didn’t want you to keep using my Pakrit? Not just because Nemon had told us you would die from it, it was…” he paused for a second and now Jenna finally looked at him, witnessed the earnest worry on his face. Set watched her intently, as if he was looking for changes he had missed before. “It just worked too well on you. Too strong. Call me a fool but I was afraid it could… change you. And not for the better.”

She didn’t fight it when he craned his neck to kiss her. When he parted from her again she realized that he had stopped walking. His eyes were burning, piercing into hers with a deep fire.

    “I don’t want to lose you, not once again!” His voice was husky, raspy with his emotions, and his big hand cupped the back of her head to keep her in place. “Promise me you won’t lose yourself?”

Jenna could only nod, her anger and frustration left to burn out without any kindling.

    “I promise.” She breathed and felt his whole body relax before he put her down on the ground again. “Promise  _me_  to trust me from now on.” She added, trying to keep some of her spite but lost it when she heard him chuckle quietly.

    “Jenna… I never stopped trusting in you for one second.” He told her and she looked up to him in surprise. But he was right. Even long before his Pak’s isolation from the Nexus he had trusted her. Trusted her with his life before he had felt something more than possessiveness and carnal desire for her. When the Prerk had attacked them, Set had trusted her to not go behind his back despite his Codes. And even behind enemy lines, on the  _Rebellion_ , he had trusted Jenna to keep him safe from the Resistance’s thirst for revenge. Her eyes grew round the more she realized just how deep his trust in her was.

Set had always had complete confidence in her abilities with and without the Pakrit. Apparently so complete that it had started to frighten him, that he had seen something she had failed to realize. And maybe he was right. Maybe the fact that she was able to achieve such inhuman, even supernatural powers through the Pakrit, was a risk in itself. They had just seen with their own eyes that humans weren’t meant to endure the raw energy of the substance.

Suddenly the rest of their team stopped in their tracks and Tork turned to wave them closer. Jenna and Set ran the last few meters, alert and bracing for the worst already.

    “What’s wrong?” Set asked quickly and ejected his spiderlegs from his Pak, ready to fight. Jenna gratefully took the pistol Tork handed her from his own weapon belt just now. Zar pointed ahead.

A giant door blocked their way, too big and heavy for Set to open it this time.

Tork bent over the receiver the Irken took from his Pak. The signal of Red’s Pak was closer now, but there was still the big, factory-like complex between them and their target. Set activated the headlight of his armor and let the ray of light travel over a sign above the door. Nemon read along: “Smeetery 1.”

Jenna turned around, stared down the way they had come from. At the other end was the Nexuslab with all its terrors.

    “They probably experimented on the smeets after they hatched…” she pondered aloud and looked back when she heard Set’s stifled hiss. “Set? What’s wrong?”

    “I was born in  _this_  smeetery.” He uttered, his eyes round. “The… Tallest hatched in here.”

Tork gave him an intrigued glance. “Do you remember anything?” he wanted to know. “Do you think they conducted those horrible tests on their own kind as well?”

Jenna remembered how Ria had told her that she had observed Set during one of her test runs*. And hadn’t she done research on Paks and Pakrit as well? Suddenly she felt sick and dizzy at the thought that Ria had probably even worked down here before she had managed to rid herself off the Codes. She didn’t want to imagine that and shook her head.

    “They must have.” She interrupted the discussion and nodded at the door with her chin. “Ria told me back then that she had researched and improved the functions of Paks. And General Lenka, as well as Set, belonged to one of her test groups where she tried improved Pakrit formulas. I bet the Tallest were the first that benefitted from her results.”

Nemon gave her a nod of agreement.

    “Naturally… the  _Hive_  probably tries to get the most potential out of his hosts until he decides to move on to another species.”

Next to them Zar suddenly trembled, his eyes glowing slightly brighter as he retreated into his body again.

     _“There are Enforcers on the other side. Lots.”_ He informed them and Tork grunted.

    “Of course, where the fuck else would they be?” he growled indignantly and jerked the giant railgun from his back. “Get ready, kids. And don’t you get cocky, we’re not done yet. Jenna.” He gave her a telling look and nodded invitingly. She took a surprised breath and felt her body reacting to the promise of pure energy, trembling at the thought of a true, real advantage for their cause. “I believe it’s high time you showed us how wrong we were to underestimate you.”

Tork grinned at her and Jenna nodded excited. Nemon stepped closer to her, a glowing syringe of pink liquid in his hand.

    “Still -  _please_  be careful.” He urged her and she all but groaned when she reached out her arm for him. Nemon injected her right in the crook of her arm, through the fabric of her suit and she noticed how the rest of their team, Set included, tensed up and even moved a few steps away from her.

Raw energy, power in liquid form raced through her veins, fed her muscles and ordered her nerves to split up and divide. Her body greeted the Pakrit like an old friend and before Nemon pulled the needle from her arm the transformation was already over. Her eyes illuminated the hallway with their crimson shine and her consciousness pushed at its borders, ready to be unleashed but she held it back for now. She sensed Set’s concern and turned towards him.

    “Are you alright?” he wanted to know sheepishly and she nodded, relieved.

    “All good.” She replied, the eerie echo in her voice sounding even more unsettling down here.

Korr quietly rattled his mandibles, unsettled and undoubtedly reminded of the time she had hauled his giant queen across her chamber with her bare hands.

     _“Can you open the door?”_ Zar asked curiously and Jenna almost laughed at that. With a small movement of her head she unlocked the door and lifted a hand. Crimson flames suddenly manifested around her fingers, the same that were burning in her eyes.

    “On the count of three I will open the door. Then you can-“

 

     _D I E_

Jenna recoiled and shook her head, taken by surprise, but the feeling of the crushing presence was already gone again, as if she had only imagined it. Still, Zar was at her side in an instant and his mind cautiously enveloped hers like a protective wall. So he had felt it, too, which calmed her a bit. His eyes were alertly narrowed as he bent over her.

     _“Jenna, do you want me to shield you while we fight?!”_  he asked alarmed but she put him off, irritated by her own carelessness to not expect an attack.

    “He’s trying to overwhelm me. It was unexpected. I’ll use my energy to veil my mind better.” She assured him quietly and strengthened the barriers around her consciousness at the same time, whereat the Zar’tak uttered a barely audible, distraught noise that made her smile apologetically.  _“Sorry, Zar. I know you hate it when you can’t sense my thoughts. Just trust me this time.”_

That seemed to remind the Zar’tak that he still had to make up for his role in all of this and he stepped back from her with a respectful nod.

     _“Of course.”_

Jenna turned towards the other members of her team who were looking at her more or less concerned as well.

    “The  _Hive_  is trying to overpower my mind. I won’t let him.” Again she leveled her burning hand at the door in front of her. “On three we storm the atrium. Zar, can you try to create a force field?” she sent him a rough sketch of her plan of attack and he hissed acknowledging. She felt how he woke the energy of his sovereign inside him and briefly focused on what was happening in the room behind the door, what would happen. The Enforcers had already realized that someone had unlocked the door and were forming up. Jenna cocked her head slightly.

    “Tork.” She said and the Commander looked over his shoulder. “A step to the right please; and shoot as soon as the door opens.” She instructed him and smiled contented when he charged up the railgun on his hip.

    “On it, kid.”

She focused her attention on Korr and the Prerk captain attentively flapped his wings when her consciousness brushed against his.

    “They will try to flank us on your side. Three of them.” She informed him and Set, standing next to Korr, gave her a nod. He would take care of it. “Nemon.” She finally breathed softly and the Ilenian sighed, relenting.

    “Yes, yes, I got it, I’ll stay-“

    “I will take you to the balcony above us. A good sniper’s nest.” She carried on and grinned at him. The perplexed expression on his face gave way to a grim smile and he grabbed the long rifle, he was carrying, tighter. “Alright? One… two…”

   
  


Something was off. They had received the order to defend the smeetery over the Nexus a while ago and she had already taken up her post with the rest of her squad. But then the chain of commands had suddenly broken off and the Nexus had remained silent. The huntress peered around the corner towards the door. They had clearly picked up the sound of the door getting unlocked from outside but their enemies hadn’t stirred since then.

She didn’t like it.

Her SIC was just changing his position to a better vantage point, and crossed the atrium, when the door suddenly opened by an invisible force and a deafening shot tore through the tensed silence. Her second got torn in half by the railgun projectile in midair and her squad finally shook the start off, attacking the intruders on a silent command: three of them flanked the attacking rebels on their left, the rest fired at the small team from their cover and the huntress was already about to grin in triumph behind her mask. But then she spotted the giant Irken, the traitorous invader!

As if he had foreseen her maneuver he jumped over the smaller Prerk and surprised the Enforcers with sharp spiderlegs! Taken off guard by his wild strength the hunters stumbled back and quickly got slashed open from squeedlyspooch to throat by the curved sword of the Prerk.

The shots of the other Enforcers ricocheted uselessly on something invisible, a force field their scanners had failed to pick up somehow! The huntress jerked her head around at the din of fighting to her left and she only had enough time left to notice the human flying –  _flying_! – towards her men in the back, eyes and hands blazing with crimson, like Pakrit come to life, before she heard the sound of a rifle above the door, on the balcony, and the ionized bullet tore her brain apart.

 

Jenna retracted her mind from the thoughts of the dying Lieutenant and was upon her three targets faster than they even realized what was happening. The first of them fell in the blink of an eye, killed by an electromagnetic impulse from her, strong enough to overload his Pak in an instant. The second had more time to react, and he just shot his gun at her. Jenna turned, twisted, and manipulated the bullet’s trajectory so it killed another Enforcer who was about to take a swing at Tork. She landed on her feet and let the immense weight of her mind come crashing down on the two Enforcers before her, paralyzing them with a thought and entering their Paks through their minds to order them to self-destruct.

But when she tried to pull away from them, something latched onto her consciousness and got pulled back into her mind, destroying the walls she had built around her thoughts with a single blow that forced her on her knees. The  _Hive_  had literally been waiting for her within the Nexus, using the Paks of the Enforcers as a virtual interface to hijack her mental contact and infiltrate her mind.

Jenna couldn’t scream, couldn’t move! Her body didn’t obey her anymore and she sank to the ground, eyes wide opened and yet she only saw darkness.

   

     _You thought you could escape me? Defy_ me _?!_

An agonizing sting flared up in the nape of her neck and quickly spread across her entire spine, crushing her concentration and ability to focus on the Pakrit inside her. And yet it also felt like the  _Hive_  was punishing her, grabbing her by the scruff like a cat who’d done something her owner didn’t like.

 

     _Your black friend was too late. The protoform already fulfilled its purpose. It laid the seed for a new Nexus within you and connected it with your neural system. You. Are. Mine!_

Jenna desperately fought the mental clutch of the  _Hive_ , tried to shake him off, but again he used the pain in her body to shatter her focus.

 

     _Kill them._

She screamed internally when her body suddenly raised itself with jerky motions, like a puppet on strings, and stood up. Now she could see again as well. Through a reddish, terribly familiar veil she saw the two still frozen Enforcers, saw them collapse under a silent command from her, their Paks overloading, the veins in their heads bursting. Then something turned her around and she saw Set running at her. She wanted to scream, wanted to warn him to get away from her.

 

     _Kill. Him._

The command was more forceful, implacable, and she saw her own, glowing hand rising, felt the surge of accumulating energy leveling at him! But suddenly a dark shadow, only partially solid, jerked Set to the side and into nothingness before the  _Hive_  could make her unleash that force. Zar!

The  _Hive_  roared furiously inside her head and in that moment Jenna changed her strategy: instead of trying to pry herself loose from his claws, she used the mental connection to  _push_  back to enter his consciousness and plunge into that crushing presence.

A shocked gasp went through her head but she couldn’t tell whether it was her own or his reaction to the sudden shift in their contact. Images rained in on her, sounds and all kinds of sensations. And pain, so much pain it made her scream. In the sickening flurry of impressions she could only cling to a few before the  _Hive_ ’s mind pulled her along, deeper through his consciousness like a wild river that swept her away in its currents.

She saw someone standing before her, looking up to her through a glassed surface. A strange alien, so foreign that she could barely understand what she was looking at, its anatomy entirely wrong, like it existed inside a different dimension, even the colors were incomprehensible, causing a headache the longer she kept looking.

But she was already dragged away from the image again, helpless in the maelstrom of his memories. There was more pain, more than she thought was possible, and Jenna suddenly experienced deep emotional suffering, like the pain had become too great to only affect her physical form.

Something else emerged from the darkness: a planet, destroyed and dead and she was drifting away from it, turning her gaze towards the endless expanse of the universe, the rest of this galaxy and beyond it, and again she felt this overwhelming pain, this agony, a physical  _yearning_  and a need, a need to fill this emptiness that could never, ever be filled and yet she had to try, was forced to try…

Suddenly the  _Hive_  severed their connection, ripped her off of his consciousness like a nasty parasite that had sucked his life force for too long to bear any longer, and completely vanished from her mind. At the same time Jenna noticed that she had almost burned through the entire Pakrit Nemon had injected her with!

The sudden void of power made her collapse in a heap but she was already grabbed by multiple hands and pulled up on her feet. Jenna realized that she had control over her body again and she gasped frantically, sucked in the air she desperately needed and gratefully clutched the arm Set had wrapped around her middle. God. Set!

Quickly she collected all her strength to open her eyes and look up to his face but he was unharmed.

    “Oh god… Set!” she groaned relieved and sensed at the edge of her consciousness how he and Zar carried her to the rest of their team, immediately crowding her.

    “What happened?! What the hell was that?!” Tork demanded, agitated and was pulled back by Nemon with gentle force who quickly bent over Jenna and pressed a warm palm to her forehead.

     “I have no idea, she just collapsed all of a sudden and then…” Set already blurted out before the Zar’tak silenced them all with his mental outcry:

      _“The_ Hive. _He managed to infiltrate her mind even though she was secured! It has to be something the protoform did to her, I can’t explain it any other way!”_

Jenna nodded feebly and held her head to shake the aftermath of the mental hijack. Her nape was still ablaze where the protoform had stung her.

    “Nexus!” she hissed out between clenched teeth and they all fell silent. “The… thing injected me with something. More scouts or… something… fuuuck.” She groaned again and held her pounding head. Nemon had the presence of mind to get something from his medical backpack and force it into Jenna’s hand. It was water. Greedily she emptied the bottle and immediately felt a little clearer. “The  _Hive_  now has… something like a hotspot, an- an interface or- or access point inside my neural system through which he can enter my mind. And the Pakrit works like a Wi-Fi-connection… at least that’s what I think it is.” She tried again to explain and the Zar’tak shook his head, completely upset.

     _“He… he was way too strong, I didn’t even realize that he had taken control again, only when you raised your hand against Set! And even then I couldn’t do anything!”_

Tork looked up to Set, helplessly.

    “So what are we supposed to do now? If Jenna can’t face this monster with Pakrit without running the risk of getting manipulated by him?!” he wanted to know, from no one in particular, and Set bared his teeth in the same helpless anger.

    “Our worst suspicions just came true… and Jenna predicted it herself.”

She recalled this morning on the  _Vengeance_ , when she had collapsed in front of Zar, and her fear that the  _Hive_ might possibly be able to take control of her again if she got too close to him. That he could somehow activate the Scouts in her brain again. Honestly, things were looking pretty bad for them! But then again…

    “I was… I was inside his  _head_.” She whispered. The Zar’tak cocked his head to the side, surprised, while Set growled upset. “I used the contact to enter his mind, like he did with me. It was… strange. It didn’t make any sense, like he isn’t in control of his own memories… and then he literally kicked me out of his consciousness, severed the connection and was gone. Maybe… hell, maybe this is his weak point.” She gave an expectant look around. Tork just shook his head, at a loss with the development of their situation.

    “At least we know now that he can get even more dangerous to you than we apprehended. We have to take this into consideration. Maybe we’ll get lucky once in this damn war and there’s a plug somewhere we can pull out and be done with it.” The Vortian muttered.

Jenna grinned crookedly and got on her feet, shaking her head when Set attempted to support her.

    “It’s fine. I’m better. We have to keep going.” She urged and crossed the atrium with quick steps, silently thanking her armor that it kept her from stumbling about on her weak knees.

   
  


Set’s map lead them through one of the bigger tunnels, branching off from the main hall. Like the entire rest of the subterranean complex, the only light came from the machines all around, and the little panels that plastered the entirety of the walls up towards the ceiling they couldn’t make out in the darkness above their heads.

Jenna stopped, her gaze trying to follow the walls up to where they would end and she suddenly took in the immensity of this facility. There were cables looping all around the wide hallway, like they had on Set’s ship. She looked down the wall again and placed a hand on one of the illuminated panels. They all looked the same, decorated with a red glowing, asleep looking emoji. She scrunched her nose at the weird display. What was this?

Set stopped beside her and placed a big hand on her shoulder.

    “Those are breeding capsules.” He explained quietly and watched her eyes widen at his words.

    “So you where…” she breathed and shot him a glance that was so full of understanding and sympathy for him that he felt how his throat grew tight. Jenna was looking like somehow everything about him made sense to her now. He could only nod.

She already took a breath again but never got to say what she meant to say: suddenly the breeding capsule’s interface came alive beneath her palm, whirring and changing its emoji to a green smiley face with a soft  _ding_ , and Jenna jerked her hand back as if the panel had burned her. Set knew what was about to happen next and he quickly pulled Jenna out of the way of the two robot arms, descending from the ceiling. One grabbed the Lid of the capsule and swiftly screwed it out of its socket in the wall.

With their breaths held they all watched as the capsule emerged, filled with a green liquid. Inside floated a little smeet, barely as long as Jenna’s hand. Although… there wasn’t just one smeet-

    “Two.” Set heard himself utter, surprised and a little reverent.

Jenna clasped her hands over her mouth in shock when the second robot arm joined the first and they simply snapped the glass tube open, dropping the tiny, wet Irkens onto the floor without a care. She hunkered down, having once more shaken off his hand that had only meant to keep her out of harm’s way to kneel down before the smeets, her hands reaching out to them.

    “Jenna!” Set called out warningly and she looked up, spotting the two other robot arms now darting towards the smeets. They were both armed with two sharp pins, like drills, and something in between what looked like the miniature version of a Pak.

He looked down on her face, saw the flash in her eyes, the fury when she put together what was going to happen next, and he wanted to pull her away from the machines, but Jenna was faster: with the last bit of Pakrit inside her she darted forward, faster than their eyes could see, collected the two smeets in one hand and grabbed the two robot arms with the other. Sparks flew as she crushed them and ripped them from their sockets that quickly retracted back into the ceiling. Somewhere an alarm was triggered but Jenna just stared up towards the ceiling, watchful, and slowly stood up, pressing the two smeets protectively towards her chest.

Set groaned quietly and rubbed his face with one hand. “You shouldn’t have done that.” He said glumly and carefully pulled her hands apart. Confused, Jenna looked down from his face to the little ones in her palms. They didn’t move. “The arms would have implanted them with a Pak, yes. But this would have also brought them to life. With an electric shock.” He explained to her, his voice gentle. “You couldn’t have known it, I know you only wanted to-“

    “Then you shock them!” she called out, excited, her hope flaring up again, and she pushed the smeets into his hands. Set was so startled that he almost recoiled. They were so small! He gave her a skeptic glance, about to protest, but her look was determined. “Please. Just try it.” She added, pleading, and he sighed with a nod.

Tork had stopped after he had heard the ruckus, along with the others, and his brow was furrowed because of the delay but he didn’t dare to stop Jenna now. Nemon however had approached them and watched the happenings with a keen eye, ready to help out if Set should fail.

    “Alright, but stand back a bit.” Set warned her and Jenna quickly obeyed, her heart pounding in anticipation. She felt the static energy emitting from his Pak before it discharged in a visible flash, jerking the tiny bodies in his hands before they slumped down again. Set grunted strained and was already about to try again, when Nemon raised his hand and quickly stepped up to him. Placing a careful, sensible fingertip on their chests, he tried to read the smeets’ vital signs, his forehead bunched up in concentration. Then, suddenly, he smiled and nodded at Jenna.

    “They’re alive.” He breathed and helped her right the little ones up a bit, resting their big heads against Set’s fingers so they wouldn’t fall over again. Slowly, very slowly they opened their eyes, big and round and of such a dark fuchsia they almost appeared black. The short, delicate antennae raised themselves sluggishly as they picked up the sound of Jenna’s delighted gasp.

     “We have to keep them warm somehow…” she mumbled, completely captivated by this wonder, and already looked around, but Set shook his head, downcast.

     “They’re alive now but they won’t survive the next ten minutes.” He said quietly and raised his metal hand in defense when she was about to protest. “They don’t have a Pak!” he insisted, “No Irken survives without his Pak for longer than ten minutes.”

Jenna chew her bottom lip, helpless and angry. Of course she remembered what Zim had told her about the Paks and that he had almost died losing his Pak to his human nemesis. But these two smeets had never even had a Pak from the start!

    “Then we wait.” She growled and wheeled around when she heard Tork groan in annoyance. “That’s for fucking setting me up, Tork, deal with it!”

It was ridiculous, childish and stubborn and yet it felt good.

Tork sighed defeated and waved his Chronometer at her.

    “Knock yourself out. Countdown’s started a few minutes ago. If we get blown up before we even got to the  _Hive_  I will blame this on you!” he groused and leaned against a wall with crossed arms.

But even after fifteen minutes the smeets were still alive and well, already crawling all over Set’s giant hand, giggling and crowing. The tall Irken had his eyebrows drawn together, watching them lost in thoughts but also fascination. Jenna was still closely bent over his hand herself and tickled the tiny Irkens with a finger until they laughed, grabbing her armored glove with teensy hands.

    “They are  _so_  adorable.” She whispered and Set nodded slowly.

    “I just don’t understand why they can’t talk yet…” he muttered and only noticed the worry in his voice when Jenna shot him a smug grin. “I… well I remember that  _I_  was able to talk after hatching! Maybe it’s because of the Pak…” he mumbled thoughtful and squared his shoulders when Tork came over to them, fingers hooked into his weapon belt with an unswerving expression on his face.

    “Time’s up. They still kicking?” he asked and Jenna nodded happily. “Great. Now what?” the Commander added, one eyebrow raised at her and her smile faded. She shot a glimpse towards the tiny, vulnerable smeets.

    “I don’t want to take them with us… if they got hurt…”

Nemon placed a hand on her shoulder and smiled at her when she turned towards him. “I could take them back to the Nexuslab and make sure they’re alright. Tork, those babes are  _important_!” he said sternly when the Vortian was already about to object to that. “They are the first Irkens in  _centuries_  that have been born without a Pak, without being under the  _Hive’_ s control and, most importantly, they are not on his radar either! If we can destroy the  _Hive_ , we still don’t know what might happen to the rest of the Irkens once this Nexus collapses. Or if it even collapses. We just. don’t. know.” He stressed and battled the irritated glare of the Commander, who was obviously perturbed at the prospect of continuing on without his Chief Medical Officer.

“Tork, this proves that Irkens are able to survive without Paks and create an Irken civilization that won’t wreak havoc on our galaxy without any conscience. We also have to think about the future!” Nemon reminded the first Commander of the Resistance and Tork finally relented with a nod, albeit reluctantly.

    “I see what you mean old friend. Even though I have a bad feeling going on without you.”

Nemon smiled crookedly.

    “I’ll be back. I doubt Ink and Ironhead would hesitate to  _annihilate_  me if I left you without any medical attention for longer than a minute” he quipped dryly and carefully took the smeets from Set’s hand.

    “Korr, please accompany Nemon. In case the Irkens somehow managed to send reinforcements through the other tunnels.” Tork ordered and the Prerk captain nodded loyally before taking the lead and leaving the smeetery with Nemon.

 

 

 

 

*see chapter 18: Friends and Foes   

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> holy shit I was gone for over a month I'm so sorry guys Dx stuff had just kept piling up ._. not the good kind but manageable 
> 
> anyways, I hope you like this chapter! I had my doubts about it but that could only be me trying to get back to writing after a long fricking time. But smeets! Holy shit, isn't that something? 
> 
> Not many chapters left you guys... I'd say four to five, tops omfg O.O


	113. Conversion

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [C U R I O S I T Y Twitter](https://twitter.com/CURIOSITYupdate)   
>  [C U R I O S I T Y playlists on Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/user/thetruemek)

###  **\- 37 Conversion –**

_Irk –_ Massive _hangar complex – 5 hours and 45 minutes before countdown end_

  


He waited.

He wasn’t a particularly patient being; that much he had learned about himself throughout the eons of his existence. If he’d have been occupying a body - a real one, like the one thousands of years ago when he had just arrived on this very planet - and not this vessel, this temporary prison, it probably would be trembling from impatience by now and pacing the vast room underneath him restlessly.

Briefly he allowed the thought to cross his mind of how it would be to finally own this new body, to imagine whether it would be a completely new experience or strangely familiar, before the _Hive_ forced his own thoughts back into the order of his collected self-restraint. Indulging in too much thrill of the anticipation would leave him only more impatient. And also _careless_.

Quickly, as an excuse to use some of his agitated energy, he sent out another mental push; a massive load of electromagnetic power that spread in every direction. Like a weak, green luminous signal the mind of the human answered, as if she had countered his mental attack with a very well placed swing, making it ricochet back to him. Only it wasn’t her doing. It was that cursed telepathic abortion that still defended her consciousness from his grasp like a pesky guarding sentinel, apparently also able to predict his mental strikes so he was never caught off guard! His opponent was much stronger than he had assumed.

The frustration inside him reached an unprecedented maximum yet again and stirred his hunger for blood and destruction, woke the ancient lust for violence and devastation that was still smoldering in his subconscious mind after all this time, normally well hidden beneath the surface of his cold calculations. Not much longer now and he would be able to let go, give in, and eradicate that little black pest, and then finally…

The _Hive_ was not a patient creature, no. But he had learned to wait, to _lurk_. She was very close now. The closest she’d ever been. The time it would take her to get to him was nothing compared to the eternity he had already existed trying to find someone like her.

So he waited.

   


Jenna caught Zar flinching and trying to stifle a groan from the corner of her eye. A short, flickering flash raced over his electromagnetic armor and she realized that he had, yet again, blocked one of the mental attacks from the _Hive_ on her mind. Her brow furrowed deeper involuntarily and she reached out for the telepath with one hand but he quickly shook his head as if to calm her and straightened his back.

    “How are you holding up? Are you gonna be okay?” she asked quietly, concern evident in her voice and he gave her a firm nod. Behind them, Set briefly stopped in his steps to cast a scrutinizing glare back the way they’d come.

Other than the wide tunnel connecting the Nexus lab with the smeetery, this one was almost claustrophobically narrow and low. And it was long. They had been walking for over fifteen minutes now and, according to Set’s map, hadn’t completely crossed the tunnel yet. But it wasn’t much further now.

Jenna felt a shiver running down her spine and wondered, probably for the umpteenth time now, what would await them at the end. They were all tensed like never before. And although no one had said it out loud up to now she knew that they were all expecting an ambush. Their team had been reduced to four; easy prey.

Tork stopped in his tracks when he noticed that the others weren’t following him anymore and he shot an impatient glance over his shoulder before gripping the railgun in his hands tighter and adjusting it on his hip. The Commander kept his silence but there was no need for words to know just how keyed-up and nervous he really was and Jenna knew exactly why: there was no _plan_.

Since they had no idea what to expect inside the former hangar housing the _Massive_ there was no distinct tactic on which they could have decided on. Set had left SIR behind with the rest of the rebels so they would have at least _one_ tactical advantage over the advancing Irken troops in order to keep a way out for Tork and his team, which was why they couldn’t send the little robot to scout up ahead for them. But even if the SIR unit would have been down here with them – there was just no other way into the hangar beside this narrow tunnel, not even drone vents or maintenance shafts. The hangar was simply a gigantic, hermetically locked chamber deep beneath the city’s surface, connected to the smeetery through one tunnel. Now there was simply not enough time to look for an alternative route and they were forced to walk right into their possible demise.

Jenna jerked from her thoughts and shot the Zar’tak another quick, scrutinizing look before catching up with Tork again, who grunted and already turned to continue his way down the tunnel when she stopped him once more with a hand on his shoulder.

    “Tork, wait.” She blurted out, immediately lowering her voice into a whisper when it tore too loudly through the eerie silence. She halfway feared that they were being observed by someone but that was probably just her nerves paired with the atmosphere inside this creepy tunnel. “I think we should at least come up with _something_ like a plan.”

The Vortian turned towards her in surprise and already let his gaze travel past her and up towards Set, asking for his trusted opinion without a word. The Irken just exhaled a hissing breath and ran an armor-plated palm over his antennae that were still looking pretty worse for wear after Purple’s assault on them from earlier. But the gesture was telling enough in itself; even the mighty invader was at a loss for once. Red eyes settled on Jenna's face once more

    “And what would you’ve had in mind, kid?” Tork asked in return, not exactly convinced of the possible success of a plan that would be relying mostly on presumptions rather than hard evidence and gathered intelligence, thus completely colliding with his Vortian nature of order and structure. For a brief moment Jenna worried at her already blood-crusted lower lip with her teeth and then looked tentatively, apologetically even, up to Zar.

    “Couldn’t you teleport into the hangar and check what’s waiting for us?” she asked with hesitance. She had her doubts that the telepath would agree to this but in that case she wanted to hear his arguments for herself. As she’d thought, he shook his head, slowly but determined.

    _“Jenna, I can’t scout further ahead and protect you from the_ Hive _’s control at the same time. He is already waiting for me to falter for just a second.”_ He sounded exhausted in her mind and the slight static in his usually so steady voice shocked her. He had already used up a lot of his strength fighting the Enforcers in the Nexus lab and freeing her from the _Hive_ ’s mental control back then and now he was constantly defending her mind against a more than overwhelmingly strong aggressor.

Jenna was frustrated. Frustrated at her own helplessness in the face of the one she had sworn to destroy and angry at the fact that she couldn’t even use the Pakrit, the goddamn _ace_ up her sleeve, to fight for herself _and_ provide the necessary edge to their last stand against the enemy. Never before had she felt this utterly useless.

    “But we can’t just bust the door without a plan!” she protested. “What if there’re a hundred Enforcers just waiting for us? Then we can throw in the towel here and now!”

To her surprise, Set shook his head. Jenna crossed her arms and regarded him with an expectant but also skeptic look.

    “I don’t think so.” The Irken said confident and Tork agreed at once:

    “If he really still had such superior numbers at his beck and call, then we wouldn’t even have gotten into the smeetery. He wouldn’t try to grind us down with little skirmishes but seize us immediately before we could cause any more damage to his operations. I’m sure we will face him and him alone once we get into that hangar.”

For a moment she just gaped at the Vortian, lost for words.

    “You can’t know that for certain.” Jenna finally uttered, shaking her head but Tork just shrugged at her.   

“What I do know is that we know even less about him than we thought we did. Moreover I know for damn sure that we don’t have time to stand around and have a chat.” He reminded her and pointedly tapped a finger against the screen of the Chronometer embedded into his chest plate, the merciless countdown towards Blow-It-All-To-Smithereens still racing away on its display. “We have to keep going.”

Just like that the conversation was over and Jenna rolled her eyes indignantly at Tork’s back. The fear in her stomach twisted unpleasantly, choking her throat with a nauseating tightness.

    _“Don’t be afraid, Jenna. We are not entirely defenseless.”_ Zar tried to placate her but she just snorted derogatively.

    “Yeah, but as-good-as without the Pakrit…” she muttered more to herself. Everything inside her was suddenly screaming to turn heel and run, as if her body instinctively sensed the grave danger she was about to get herself into. But instead she forced her feet to follow the tunnel towards their objective.

   


When they finally reached the end of the narrow passage, the _Hive_ had tried three more times to breach the walls the Zar’tak had wrapped around her mind and with each new attempt the telepath had flinched harder than before. It was almost as if the enemy was deliberately trying to wear the Zar’tak down with his attacks, what didn’t surprise them.

Jenna stared at the heavy door blocking their way, the last stop before the hangar, and she felt the hairs on her arms and her nape stand on end, stiff like the fine needles connecting the heavy combat suit with her body. Next to her, Tork took a deep breath and let it out in a low whistling.

    “Okay, this is it, kids. Don’t get cocky now, I only got you lot left, remember?” Without waiting for their response he turned to Set: “Can you get that open?”

The big Irken nodded and was about to hand his rifle over to the Zar’tak to tamper with the door, when said door suddenly crunched in its frame before it slowly slid up to reveal the dark inside of the hangar. Jenna recoiled instinctively and hissed a suppressed cursed. Tork chuckled humorlessly.

“I was just about to say something. Pretty rude to let us wait out front when he’s obviously expecting our company.” The Commander quipped aridly and lifted his massive railgun higher on his hip. With smooth movements he quickly made his way deeper into the hangar, the vast size of the room appearing almost surreal after the confined spaces of the tunnel. Tork turned into every direction, his eyes scanning the darkness in front of him before he gave a curt nod. Set followed him at his command, silent as a shadow despite his bulky suit and the heavy rifle tucked between his arms.

Zar had to gently nudge Jenna so she would move from her spot inside the tunnel and she quickly drew the gun from her back, despite the tiny weapon appearing utterly ridiculous to her now.

The tensed silence was grating on her nerves. There was a faint touch of static in the air around them and she could hear Zar’s quiet hiss of complain in her back.

    “Night vision on, everyone. It’s far too dark for my taste.” Tork’s calm order sounded too loud even in Jenna’s ears but she obeyed without a second thought and activated the integrated visor of her suit. The green light of the infrared vision unveiled what the darkness had been hiding from them. She heard herself drawing in a sharp breath.

    “Are you seeing this?” she asked, her voice flat, and raised her pistol towards one of the far off walls she was now able to make out in the distance. Set followed her line of fire with his eyes, keeping his own weapon aimed at the center of the hangar.

    “Ah, fuck…” he growled and stopped. Tork mirrored him immediately and turned around.

Jenna stared at the round shapes littering the surrounding walls like tumors. The residual light amplifiers of their visors caused the metallic surface of the spheres to shimmer faintly.

    “They’re Paks.” She realized in a whisper and quickly looked around. The sight continued at the opposing wall and she tried to count the Paks but quickly came to the conclusion that there had to be way over a thousand if there were Paks on every wall in this hangar. They got bigger the further they walked towards the center of the hall and also… different. Now the Paks looked more familiar in their design, somehow more modern and farther evolved than the crude ones by the door. They also emitted a soft glow that was soon lost in the expanse of the vast room. 

A macabre fascination made them walk deeper into the hangar, slowly and warily. The Paks grew bigger still, sturdier and suddenly Jenna heard Set suck in a sharp breath. The bright finger of the torch mounted to his gun flicked up towards one of the Paks right across from them. Its spark-spraying counterpart was right next to it, the soft red pulse of a tracking device nearly canceled out by the Pak’s own red glow. But even without it they would have known what was in front of them.

    “Red’s Pak.” Set spat forth from between clenched teeth and took a last, confirming glance at the scanner in his hand.

    “And Purple’s.” Jenna added and turned around, swiping her gaze over the entirety of the Paks. “So… these are all the Paks of dead Irken? Or just those of the Tallest? Why… why are they here, what does he want with them? And why did they consume the Tallest before coming here?”

    “I don’t know…” Set admitted honestly, “it looks like some kind of collection...”

Before any one of them could say another word there was a loud bang, and somewhere over them floodlights activated, tinting the hangar in glaring light. The four rebels shouted out in pain when the residual light amplifiers of their night vision devices amplified the light’s intensity tenfold, blinding them. Jenna ripped her visor off and chucked it away, pressing her free arm over her eyes.

A hard hand pulled at her, dragging her behind a broad, armored back and she clung to Set with one hand, all the while trying to adjust her eyes to the light.

    “How many of them, Zar?!” She heard Tork yell and felt her heart leaping into her throat. Had she been right about the Enforcers all along?!

 

    _Just me._

The voice droned from within their heads and all around at the same time and with it a pained howl erupted from somewhere left of her. Zar! The telepath was hunched over, clutching at his head with his paws, no doubt overwhelmed by the crushing presence unleashing its force on them and trying to keep their minds veiled from the worst of it.

The _Hive_ chuckled darkly. Suddenly there were more noises; a loud whirring and rushing, like a giant machinery system set into motion and then the piercing light grew dimmer and Jenna was finally able to make out rough shapes in front of her. Something was lowered down from the ceiling, huge like a house and she jerked on Set’s armor so he would step farther away from it. She heard the distinct snapping sound of his rifle, followed by another cold laugh.

 

    _Oh please. Now I do feel a little jerked around. I had expected you to haul out something bigger than those toys. Is the Resistance really that cheap?_

The massive shadow came to a hissing halt shortly below the ceiling and blocked out most of the glaring light. Jenna blinked frantically to regain her vision, taking in the dark crimson surroundings of the illuminated hangar that made it look like the raw insides of a huge beast, and finally dared to peek around Set’s back. The sight made her freeze.

It was the very same figure that haunted her nightmares ever since she drank Set’s Pakrit.

The _Hive_ was a giant orb made of metal, as big as a house, somehow resembling the Paks on the reddish walls around them and yet unifying all their different shapes in its form, with one giant, red lens right in the middle, staring down at them like a freakish eye. An eye that seemed able to look right into the depths of her mind, despite its lack of expression, as it now began to glow ominously.

Jenna instinctively recoiled from its glare. Without permission her brain called up every buried memory of the nightmares. Every gruesome image the _Hive_ had ever forced her to look at. She felt trapped, like this was yet another nightmare she would not wake up from and she held her breath, terrified, when that red beam coming from the orb aimed right at Set. But no deadly laser shot down from the entity above their heads.

Something brushed her head and jerked her from her paralysis. Jenna watched the spider leg emerge from Set’s Pak, armed with a scanning tool that swept the air above him before bleeping and disappearing into its case again. Still being every bit the invader he once had been proud to call himself, Set eyed the _Hive_ with sharp, calculating intellect, no doubt assessing the data he had just gathered.

    “The metal casing is dense and its compounds unknown… I have never seen anything like this. Not even the Meekrob knew of the elements the structure is comprised of. But the molecular scans indicate that it should be vulnerable to the railgun, Commander.” Set informed Tork and pointed his gun towards the ceiling where their enemy was stuck like a giant, metal bat, connected to countless cables and tubes that disappeared from their view. “I suggest we take out the weakest structures first – that being the mount’s pivoting sockets.”

Tork grunted back in affirmation, his railgun booting itself up with a menacing hum.

 

    _Jenna. Why are you hiding from me? I thought you were so desperate to destroy me… don’t tell me you changed your mind?,_

the _Hive_ hummed thoughtfully, completely ignoring Set and Tork, causing the Irken to snarl at him.

    “You won’t lay a fucking finger on her!” he snapped but the _Hive_ just laughed resoundingly, the noise numbing in its intensity both inside their heads and outside, and the red eye pulsed in the beat of his emotionless mirth.

 

    _Ah, Set. My traitorous scion. And how am I supposed to ‘lay a finger’ on her? I can’t even move in this form to begin with._

The fact that he admitted this so openly stumped them all. At the same time it alarmed Jenna more than anything.

    “What’s that supposed to mean?” Tork growled next to her and took an alerted look around. She knew that he was watching for the Enforcers they were all still expecting. Despite the fear that rooted her to the spot, Jenna let her eyes travel over the massive, Pak-like thing again.

Mounted to the ceiling like an overgrown hunting trophy, with the only extremities being the countless cables and tubes that connected him to the ceiling, you really couldn’t say that their opponent looked awfully mobile from down here. But by now she had learned to never let anything lull her into a false sense of security.

    “I have no idea.” Jenna mumbled honestly and tried her hardest to spot something that would tell them what the Hive was plotting. The Zar’tak positioned himself behind her, creating a second barrier with his body to shield her while Tork closed in from the side.

    “We have to get it down from there if we want to deal some real damage.” The Commander whispered, although Jenna doubted that keeping their voices down would do them any good; after all, the _Hive_ was talking inside their heads. “I don’t think he’ll get down on our level willingly.”

Jenna shared his doubts on that regard. “Though I think it’s already strange that he reveals himself to us at all… what’s he planning?” she added.

As if to act on her words, the red light of the single lens grew brighter and seemed to focus its ray until it was leveled right at Tork. Again, Jenna’s breathing stopped altogether for a sickening moment.

 

    _What’s this? No swollen monologue about how my tyranny is going to end now? No heroic speech? You really do disappoint me, Commander._

The voice inside their heads sounded challenging and the Vortian already took a breath to shout his rebuke, but Jenna realized that the _Hive_ was just trying to make them waste time. Time they didn’t have.

Quickly she stepped around Set, ignoring his startled hiss, and took a few steps closer towards the _Hive_. She heard Tork’s warning shout but kept her gaze locked with the glowing orb, its ray following her like that of a searchlight that had found its target.

    “Why the Paks? What do you need them for?” for a terrifying second she turned her back on the _Hive_ to gesture towards the metal structures littering the hangar walls. “Why did the Paks consume the remains of the Tallest before coming here?” While she hadn’t seen it with her own eyes she was quite able to imagine the scene Set had explained to her before. If the _Hive_ wanted to waste their time they could at least get some _valuable_ information out of him, right?

 

    _Very good, Jenna. At least you’re willing to cut to the chase as to why we are all gathered here today… before you, you see the fruit of my labor: every single Pak of every Tallest who has ever held command over the Irken armada. Other than the Paks of mere foot soldiers, drones and other,_ insignificant _Irkens, their Paks don’t self destruct upon the death of the host. Instead they come down here, where I store them._

    “But why? I thought all the information and experience an Irken gathers is synced to you over the Nexus. Why would you need the hard drives?” Jenna probed further, hoping to distract the _Hive_ long enough for Set and the others to come up with a plan. The low, surprised chuckle that echoed in her head made her tremble.

 

    _I admit I hadn’t expected you to be so… chatty. Well, I suppose I can explain the mechanics behind it all to you since you’re going to become a part of my cycle soon enough and I’m curious to see what you will do with the information._

_“Keep him distracted, Jenna.”_ Zar’s sudden contact almost made her flinch but Jenna caught herself in time to not make the _Hive_ suspicious. At least she hoped so. _“Set is still scanning for possible weak points.”_

 

    _Once an Irken is elected as Tallest, I change the Coding in their Pak. Among other things, the Pak now controls its own growth rather than simply growing along in relativity to its host, using the biomass of the Irken to reach a certain size._

Now Jenna couldn’t keep her body from shivering violently, and even Set inhaled sharply at the revelation. So that was why the Tallest had looked that way… emaciated, gaunt monsters with bony features while the Paks on their back had towered their bodies like swollen parasites made of metal. Without really realizing it she shot a glance over to Set. Would the same fate have befallen him at one point? If the Tallest had died naturally (provided there was something like a natural cause of death in Irkens), would he have become the next Tallest? Sentenced to serve the _Hive_ while his Pak would grow abnormally in size to suck the remaining matter from his body one day?

 

    _Upon the death of a Tallest, the Pak absorbs the rest of the biomass, converts it into Pakrit and separates from its host to return to me. Once integrated into my network it serves as a living base of energy and Pakrit that I will use for the next cycle, the next line of hosts…_

The _Hive_ made a meaningful pause and seemed to regard her expectantly. Jenna swallowed strained; her throat dry and her tongue heavy in her mouth.                      

    “Meaning us. Me.” She answered for the entity. He hummed satisfied inside her head.

 

    _You see? I can already tell that our conjunction is going to be something exceptional. Something almost perfect. Other than the primitive Irkens I found here so long ago, your species is already much farther evolved than any host I’ve ever taken…_

    “Over my dead body you overgrown trashcan!” Set had closed in on her unnoticed, now pulling her behind his back with iron determination while four of his spider legs shot out from his Pak, their tips armed with the heavy thrusters. The air around the engines was already boiling, mirroring the rising fury he struggled to keep from impairing his judgment. “I don’t care what you are or where you came from; the only thing I’m curious about is how big of a hole you’ll make when I shoot you down from there!”

The _Hive_ uttered something close to a regretful sigh.

 

    _Oh Set… you know, if everything would have commenced as I had planned, you would have become the next Tallest. I specifically ordered Red and Purple in advance to groom you to the requirements of a leader so you could fill in their roles seamlessly once the time had come for their Paks to devour them. But now… someone severed your link to the Nexus, took out the transmitter that kept you tethered to the rest of my long range network like everyone else. But that is irrelevant now._

Jenna tensed automatically and even Set raised his rifle in alert at the sudden change of tone. The previously so sardonic and bored voice had taken on a cold, sharp edge that couldn’t bode well.

 

    _It was a mistake to come here, Set. In the end your betrayal accomplished nothing. Bring her to me and kill the others!_

The order was loud and booming, as if it was meant for someone else and Jenna already whipped around with her gun raised, scanning the remaining darkness of the vast hangar for the Enforcers the Hive had called upon after all.

    “Zar, are you getting anything?” she called out to the telepath but he shook his head, confused.

    _“No one’s coming.”_ He replied.

Behind them, Set suddenly groaned in pain. She turned around to him and gasped in start: the invader was holding his head as though he had received a physical punch.

    “Set? What’s wrong?!” she asked, panicking, her heart clenching painfully at the sight as he shook his head, numbed, baring his teeth at the pain.

Jenna wanted to wrap her arm around his back and brace him but she flinched away alarmed when she felt the shock of static energy that jumped from his Pak onto her skin, making her hair stand on end. The static pulsed in the same beat as the _Hive_ ’s glowing lens. “Set?” she asked again, uncertain. Another pulse shook him before the Irken suddenly froze. His eyes, up to now clenched tight in agony, slowly opened, revealing a faint glow of Pakrit that had overtaken the complex depths of his crimson eyes as it flooded his body. She barely registered that the muscles on his neck had doubled before Set already moved in a single, blurred motion.

Suddenly there was a big hand wrapped around her throat like a vice, pulling her brutally off her feet. Jenna’s cry got stuck in her throat and she dropped her gun to claw at Set’s arm.

Chaos erupted around her: Tork roared a command that Set ignored, the _Hive_ laughed triumphing above them and the Zar’tak exploded into a whirling cloud of black matter that raced towards her like a vicious tornado come alive. In the next second she was free again, her pulse thundering a desperate beat through her unobstructed carotids that dizzied her brain with the sudden wave of blood finally reaching it again and she winced at the collision with the hard metal floor. Her eyes were swimming with tears but she blinked them away, her gaze unyieldingly fixed on the two aliens in front of her, fighting with deadly intentions.

Zar had brutally jerked her out of Set’s grasp and thrown her out of harms way before lunging at the Irken. His five eyes were they only thing she was still able to make out with certainty and they were ablaze with a green fire that rivaled the sheen of Pakrit in Set’s eyes. His body was no longer a contained, fixed shape, but a sickening vortex of black, shielding her from the invader trying to get to her. Set still had his rifle and he shot at the whirling mass that was pushing him back and more than once Jenna saw blood the shade of copper splash towards the ceiling.

Someone grabbed her yet again, pulling her to her feet by the collar of her armor and she yelled in protest. Her ears registered Tork’s voice at the edge of her conscious thoughts and she clutched at his hand, wanted him to pull her back into reality but the horrible scene in front of her didn’t disappear.

    “Tork… what… what’s happen-“ her brain was feeling sluggish all of a sudden and she tried frantically to understand why Set had grabbed her and why he was attacking the Zar’tak now. “Stop it…” she panted, “Why isn’t he stopping?!”  Her own voice sounded foreign and it cracked as Tork pulled her farther away from the vicious fight.

She heard Set hiss in outrage and then the loud, terrible sound of his fist hitting something _solid_. The Zar’tak went down with a pained sound, staying on the ground for a few frightening seconds before he tried to get up again. In that time Set’s glowing eyes had found her and he stalked towards her, single-mindedly, his fingers twitching into claws.

    “The _Hive_ , kid!” Tork hissed startled and nodded towards the ceiling. “I think… I think he’s controlling him!” The Commander raised his railgun in a threat when Set came closer and closer, his head lowered like a panther ready to pounce. She could hear that his hands shook as he charged the railgun. Set didn’t stop. With a shrill sound all six spider legs ejected from his Pak and rose, preparing to strike. Jenna realized she had lost her own gun when Set had grabbed her and almost laughed out; the tiny pistol wouldn’t have been able to even scratch Set’s armor anyway.

Instead she recalibrated her suit, directing all power to her leg support so she would be able to run and jump faster. Although she doubted it would make any difference to Set, powered with Pakrit and equipped with a far better suit of armor.

But before the invader could lunge at them, something black tackled him from the side, sweeping him off his feet. The Zar’tak grabbed the much bigger Irken and hauled him across the room, his body engulfed in a green glow as he positioned himself between them and Set who shook his head and jumped back up.

    _“I can’t reach him! It’s his Pak!”_ the amount of scratchy static in his voice made Jenna and Tork groan. _“You have to force the_ Hive _to relent… control…”_ The contact was severed by a pained cry when Set’s spider legs pierced the Zar’tak’s shoulders and he flung the telepath to the side like a puppet. Jenna muffled her own scream with one hand - the other was still clinging to Tork.

    “He’s going to kill him…” she uttered hoarsely in sudden realization. “Tork… he will…”

    “They’ll kill _each other_ if we don’t do something about it!” Tork interrupted her with a snarl and dragged her along to the nearest wall. The _Hive’_ s single eye followed them with like that of a hawk. The bloody fight between Set and the Zar’tak didn’t seem to interest him at all. Jenna still tried to keep her eyes on them, her fear a hot, suffocating knot beneath her sternum but the Commander forced her to turn around. With the sled of his railgun he pointed at something hidden between two Paks, previously obscured by the darkness.

Tubes, as thick as her arm, ran up the entirety of the crimson wall towards the ceiling and ended right at the massive structure that was the _Hive_. Jenna blinked in surprise.

    “A direct connection…” she murmured perplexed and noticed the Vortian nodding next to her.

    “I am inclined to believe that these are important.” He replied, growling, and aimed his gun at the biggest tube right in front of them. And as if to confirm his assumption, the _Hive_ suddenly stirred.

 

    _Blasted pests you Vortians…_

Like he was acting on a silent command Set shook off the Zar’tak who was trying to wrestle him down and used the thrusters in his Pak to dash towards Jenna and Tork before the telepath could get up again. Jenna braced herself to evade him, but Tork had no such plans: without faltering for one second he fired right at the tube. Pink liquid burst forth from the hole, showering them with a sticky, wet layer of Pakrit. The _Hive_ roared in wordless fury.

Jenna had barely enough time to notice that the lights of the Paks on the wall all went out before Set was already in front of her, his spider legs bend into sharp claws over his head.

    “Set stop! It’s me! Set!” She yelled but the invader showed no reaction to her pleading or any sign of recognition and grabbed her shoulder with enough force to make the armor beneath his fingers crunch. Jenna realized she had to change her tactic and kicked at him, but without any Pakrit she was helpless against his raw power.

She screamed in pain when his hand squeezed her shoulder even harder and heard Zar shouting her name inside her head and his cry from farther away, but it was Tork who got to her first: her ears picked up the loud howl of his railgun briefly charging up, before a deafening shot broke free right next to her and shattered Set’s metal prosthesis in a cloud of titanium shrapnel that dug into the exposed skin of her face and made her clench her eyes shut reflexively.

The next thing she noticed was Set letting go off her and whirling around with a pained roar, only to throw himself forward and crash his intact fist right into Tork’s face, the force of the punch enough to launch the Vortian into the wall where he collapsed lifelessly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ahahaa... ayy isya boi... uuuuh... skinny penis!
> 
> omg wow I have no idea why?? i was gone?? so long?? ????  
> honestly, at this point I don't even think I have any excuse for this just blame my fricking burnt-out brain or smth iunno
> 
> anyway, I still plan on finishing this! There shouldn't be more than three chapters + epilogue left so hang in there kids! I love you and thank you for not dumping me ;__;


	114. Conversion - Pt. 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [C U R I O S I T Y Twitter](https://twitter.com/CURIOSITYupdate)   
>  [C U R I O S I T Y playlists on Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/user/thetruemek)

###  **\- 37 Conversion –**

**Part 2**

 

  _Irk's orbit - Nest of the Prerk - 4 hours and 45 minutes before countdown end_

 

  
  
Far above the surface of Irk, the Queen of the Prerk was shaken by a tremor that threw the flock of tiny caretakers roaming her body into a state of sheer panic. Their enormous queen, their all-mother, groaned as if it was her suffering the pain she was no doubt observing at this moment. Another blow of the Irken Viral Tank that was currently chasing them hit the giant nest and caused the glowing strings littering the ceiling to sway.

Tscharr, who had refused – along with the other members of her inner circle – to leave the Queen’s side, was clacking his mandibles nervously and tried to suppress the agitated fluttering of his sturdy wings so he wouldn’t disturb his Queen in her concentration. Instead he uttered his concerned question through a change in his pheromones, submissively dipping his head when the Queen shifted on her eggs and replied to his query:

    “Our sentinel is in grave danger… I can feel her fear, her suffering… something terrible is happening down there.”

The open grief and hopelessness in her usually so firm, melodic baritone educed a commiserative hum from her guards which quickly rose into a dark lament that was supposed to bring the human luck and guide her through her strife. Meanwhile the Queen craned her long antennae upwards and contacted the leaders of her fleet.

    “Double your efforts. Try to breach through to the surface of the planet and support the rebels trapped down there! As long as there’s time left we have to gather all our remaining strength to aid the sentinel in destroying the _Hive_.”

The Queen had no need for a device to know exactly just how much time Jenna had left until the heavy guns of the _Vengeance_ would lay the capitol to waste. She only hoped that it would be enough.

 

 

Jenna barely dodged Set’s grip and spun lithely around to the side to get out of his reach but again she had to dive headlong when two spider legs made a grasp for her. Not even three minutes had passed since Set had brutally punched Tork unconscious and yet her legs were already shaking, her body almost completely exhausted by the strain the energy-drain from her own suit was causing her.

The loss of his arm prosthesis didn’t seem to slow Set down in the slightest; on the contrary, his attacks were following her faster and faster, purposefully edging her closer to the wall where she soon wouldn’t have any more room left to evade him.

With her risky push forward just now she had at least gained a little more ground but, again, her eyes were leaving the threat in front of her to dart over towards Tork’s lifeless form, lying in a heap to her right side.

The caring, medical part within her screamed at her to check on the Commander immediately, to assert herself that he was really just knocked out and not dead! She had seen his blue blood in the midst of the chaos, although she couldn’t clearly recall if it had been Set’s fist, or the following impact with the wall – or, dear God, both! – that had caused it to spray, leaving the extent of his injuries a big, alarming unknown! And she couldn’t lose Tork… she couldn’t lose any of them!

Set’s hand suddenly shot forward and wiped any further rational thought from Jenna’s mind as she dropped onto her back instinctively to not get grabbed. From the ground she kicked at his legs, tried to unbalance his stance and swipe him off his feet but was forced to roll sideways when a heavy duty combat boot came crashing down, aiming at her kneecap.

Just as the thought crossed her mind where the hell _Zar_ was, a black shadow flashed past her in a blur and jerked Set away from her by the flayed remains of his metal arm. Lickety-split Jenna was up on her feet again, ignoring her buckling, protesting knees and used the brief respite to sprint over to Tork.

Her ragged breath stopped altogether when she turned him over onto his back, as gentle as she could. The Commander’s face was almost entirely black from the hematoma Set’s fist had left in it and the incipient swelling was stretching the skin taut like an over-filled balloon. Yet despite the visual mess Jenna could clearly see that the facial bones had been broken in multiple places. Especially both orbital bones, as well as the flat curve of his nasal cavity, had been literally smashed to pieces.

When Jenna tried to carefully lift his head and feel over the back of his skull, Tork groaned faintly and winced in her arms. She exhaled a breath she didn’t realize she had held this entire time.

But her relief was only short-lived; there was nothing she could do for Tork down here now. For a second she cursed herself that she had sent Nemon back up to the Nexus lab with the smeets.

Yet in the next moment there was no more time to think: Set had caught the Zar’tak with his spider legs again and hurled the bleeding alien across the room in his rage. His breath was also already growing more exerted from the strain the Pakrit was wreaking upon his body, but he still didn’t stop. With heavy steps he stormed after the telepath and Jenna gasped in shock when she saw the sharp, curved tips of his spider legs change into something that oscillated so fast she could barely make out what it was.

 _Vortian blades_ , was all she thought before her body moved on its own, the mere memory of that time Set had used these high frequency blades to cut into her room’s window like a knife into butter enough to override her brain and set her legs into motion. Her suit’s support system catapulted her forward and she used the accelerated, multiplied weight of her body to slam into Set.

The Irken had heard her coming for him a mile away and lowered his stance to brace against the impact and intercept her, but within the last second before the crash Jenna changed her trajectory, dove away underneath his arm and grabbed the harmless ends of the spider legs that stuck out of his Pak.

With a cry that set her lungs ablaze, she threw herself forward and pulled her arms down in the same motion. Sparks exploded from behind her and scorched her short hair but the fact that she kept flying through the air, her hands still clutching the cold metal rods, was enough evidence of her success.

Set roared in pain as his spider legs were torn out of his Pak, Jenna’s momentum still high enough to throw him onto his back.

Jenna crashed into the ground herself and rolled uncontrollably a few meters farther, abandoning her grip on the Pak legs to jerk her arms in front of her unprotected face. Despite her suit she stayed on the ground for a moment, groaning, trying frantically to fight down the sickening spinning inside her head before Set had enough time to get up again.

Multiple hands pulled her up and she wanted to fend them off in a spell of panic but the tickling sensation that flared up in the nape of her neck made her stop.

    _“Stay out of this, Jenna - he is far too strong for you! I don’t want you to get hurt this close to our goal!”_ the Zar’tak hissed inside her head and tried to push her behind him but Jenna just spat out a cold laugh that sounded more like a hoarse bark.

   “Yeah, sure… but _you_ can beat him on your own?!” she panted back breathlessly and smacked his hand away. Her body was shrieking at the pain and the loss of energy caused by her suit but she knew that she couldn’t slow down now! “We… we just have to knock him out, then we can deal with the _Hive_ himself. Set’s… basically the only weapon this monster’s got left against us.”

She saw Zar’s slow nod from the corners of her eyes. His jaws were hanging open and his dark tongue was twitching in the rapid pace of his chivvied breath. His own chest plate had countless tears and dents where Set’s brutal punches had caught him and beneath the torn overall of the rebels she could see the bright copper of his blood shimmering in the floodlights. He was just as close to the end of his tether as Set. But she knew he would only ever stop once he was dead.

They both suddenly tensed on a silent command when Set drew his knees to his chest, jumped to his feet and whipped around to them with a vicious snarl that Zar returned just as furiously.

The ex-invader had lost quite a few bits of his armor as well through both the telekinetic attacks from the Zar’tak and his razor-sharp teeth, the dark fabric of his suit beneath the armor already torn in multiple places and drenched in blood. On his broad chest plate, crimson blood mixed with both copper and a deep blue. Sweat covered his overheating body where he wasn’t protected by the armor and Jenna flinched at the sight, tears suddenly stinging in her eyes without her permission.

    _“I won’t kill him.”_ Zar promised, undoubtedly having read her inner turmoil. _“Well… I will try not to.”_

She all but snapped her neck looking up to him in start and witnessed the cold gleam in his eyes, the steeled determination of someone who would do whatever it might take. Jenna bit down hard on her lower lip to swallow the raging flood of emotions threatening to burst past her lips and shot a deadly glare up to where the _Hive_ was hanging from the ceiling, safe and sound, just out of reach and without pity… like a giant, bloated, metal _tick_. He was still following the happenings beneath him without any comment, but with the same disinterested indifference of a bored emperor waiting for the fools to amuse him.

    “Try to keep my fiancé in one piece…” she ground out through gritted teeth, her jaw aching, “I’m gonna get Tork’s railgun.”

Zar growled his affirmation and crouched, combat-ready, his four arms loosely bent at his sides. The air between his paw like hands burned with a green glow.

    _“Understood.”_

They moved as one. Jenna collected all her strength one more time with a hissing breath to sprint for the other end of the hall and the Zar’tak shot forward to catch Set who was already turning to follow on her heels. She could hear the tearing of skin and the stifled sounds of pain from both of them behind her but she didn’t stop.

Tork’s railgun was farther away from him than she had thought yet it hadn’t been damaged in the fall and was still humming menacingly with the energy stored within it. Jenna readjusted her suit so she could lift the heavy gun more easily and whirled around. The _Hive_ was staring down at her but didn’t seem about to stop her.

    “What? Nothing to say this time?!” she snapped and raised the railgun onto her shoulder to better aim it at the ceiling. The heat of the weapon burned into her bare cheek but Jenna didn’t pay the pain any mind and leveled the long sled out until it was aiming right at the bracket above the _Hive_. With a forceful jerk on the lower end compartment of the muzzle the railgun spun into life and charged, collecting as much electromagnetic energy inside its coils as necessary to shoot the magnetically charged projectile through even the thickest of armor plates.

The howling din of the weapon was so loud that Jenna blocked out everything else; her heart - beating so fast its sound blended into the pulsing of the railgun -, Set’s howl as the Zar’tak buried his teeth in the crook of his neck, the static still around them that seemed to condense into a thick blanket in the air. All her senses focused only on the spot that would become a hole in the _Hive_ ’s defenses if her aim was true.

Suddenly a low pulse originated from the _Hive_ , a shockwave only visualized by the short flash of his gleaming lens. But its effect was as immediate as it was devastating.

The wave of energy hit her, virtually ran through her body like the bass of a drum, making the static around her crackle with energy. Jenna had no time to react when her vision already turned black, pain flared up inside her head, crushing everything in its wake and she abandoned the weapon she was still carrying in order to clutch her scalp with her hands and try to keep her skull from exploding. The Scouts within her brain took control over her body on the order of the _Hive_ , paralyzing and torturing her at the same time. She didn’t even realize that she fell to the ground, that she screamed herself voiceless in agony – that Zar tried in vain to break through to her over their shared mental connection – she was trapped inside her own body, her own head. Another shockwave crashed over her and threatened to split her head into two.

 

    _As I said, it was a mistake to come here. Just the telepath and your merry band of rebels… then, maybe, you would have stood a chance. But you and Set… you were the weak link in your sad little operation from the start._

This time there was no malicious emotion in his voice, only cold, rational certainty. Jenna saw the red orb of his lens emerge from the darkness that still kept her and the pain inside her head grew stronger yet, unbearable, _unfathomable_ and only the merciless clutch of the _Hive_ kept her body from losing consciousness and protect her mind.

 

    _You both had been severed from the Nexus… from my long range network. Without the active Scouts in your brain and Set’s transmitter I wasn’t able to influence you from afar anymore. But in here… so close to me, the sheer power of my being is enough to affect you… You must have felt the static when you stepped through the door, the cumulated energy of my physical form. I thought your little black guardian would realize what was going on and warn you. But in the end, he is not nearly as strong as his cursed sovereign._

_“Don’t be so sure about that!”_

Zar’s snarl tore through the pain like a glowing hand that pulled her from the black water she was drowning in. A blue light jerked her from the control the _Hive_ had put her under and she snapped her eyes open, struggling for air and quickly sat up. Her hand fell onto the hot gun lying next to her and she pulled it back on her shoulder with robotic movements, rolling onto her knees and charging the railgun up once more, her body acting on its own again, yet this time it wasn’t the _Hive_ puppeteering her.

The kickback of the unleashed shot was brutal enough to throw her back on the ground but all she noticed was the metallic screech when the armor piercing projectile ripped through the bracket, scattering its pieces across the hangar.

The massive carapace of the _Hive_ sagged dangerously and swung to the side, still held by the second bracket and the coil of cables connecting it to the ceiling. Jenna saw the contraption tremble and knew that it had never been meant to support to crushing weight of the metal construct on its own.

With a mad grin she pulled herself on her feet again and reloaded the gun, aiming it swiftly at the rest of the mount on the ceiling. The eye of the _Hive_ flashed rapidly at her, furious, like a fucking strobe light but this time he stayed silent. Jenna had no time to look at the blue forks of lightning, flashing up within half a meter of her each time the _Hive_ fired another shockwave at her.

Yet she realized what was going on, what had _changed_ : Zar wasn’t using just his body’s own energy to protect her anymore but above that the precious remains of the power his sovereign had yielded to him; the rest of the Meekrob that was still keeping them from being reborn and that still anchored the Zar’tak’s fate to her own.

The second shot hit home like the first one and now there was a high groaning sound, a crack, followed by a whistling snap when the cables finally tore apart under the _Hive_ ’s immense weight. For the duration of one heartbeat it was completely silent - the massive, Pak-like form appeared to fall in slow motion before it hit the hangar floor with a deafening boom, shaking the vast hall so hard Jenna was thrown off her feet yet again.

A faint gurgle fifteen yards away, however, crushed her short moment of triumph and made her whirl around.

    “No!”

Set didn’t hear her piercing cry, his antennae perked up so stiffly that the sensitive tips were vibrating and the muscles in his neck protruded the sweaty skin like steel ropes as he tightened the grip of his remaining hand around the Zar’tak’s throat, his sharp fingers digging into the leathery skin of the bleeding alien beneath him, crushing cartilage and bones alike. Zar wasn’t fighting back, although his eyes were opened wide, filled with an intense blue light that was still shielding her from the _Hive_ ’s attacks but Jenna could see, horrified, how his eyes beneath the glow darkened as the vessels inside them burst, filling their surface with blood. He was caught in a trance; sacrificing himself to shield her from the mental assaults of their true enemy. He was giving her a window to act!

She picked up the railgun while she dashed towards them, her feet carrying her across the short distance in no time. Again she yelled at Set to stop but again the Irken didn’t react. The blue flashes around her got dimmer, Zar’s eyes faltering in their intense gaze, dangerously faint now. She grabbed the heavy weapon at both ends, swung it around and hammered the bulky metal butt sideways against Set’s head. As if she had pressed a button, the invader collapsed in a heap under the blow and sagged to the floor, his hand finally letting go off the black neck.

Jenna still had enough compassion to worry about him but then she already pushed the giant Irken out of the way and bent over the barely breathing, unconscious Zar’tak.

Her eyes roamed his body, taking in the count and size of his wounds in the split of a second, quickly estimating the amount of blood he had lost and scanning his faint breath and reflex responses. The compiled prognosis made her choke back a sob and she tried to seize the trembling in her hands as she gently placed them on his shoulders, giving him a light shake.

    “Zar? Oh God… oh _fuck_ no… no no no, wake up, please!” Behind her there was a crunching sound, like something big, something made of metal, was dragging itself towards her across the floor and she got more and more hectic trying to wake the Zar’tak while also forcing herself not to look over her shoulder. “Come on Zar, I need you! I- I told you not to kill Set but- but that doesn’t mean… doesn’t… that you could… that _you_ …” her already overstrained voice cracked and broke away completely and she quickly wiped the tears away that obscured her vision. She was about to slap him out of pure fear and desperation when five eyes slowly opened and Jenna all but screamed in relief.

Nothing more than a dim blue hue illuminated his eyes and his shallow breath left his chest in pained hisses. One of his hands palmed feebly over his armor while his mouth opened and the gleam of his diminishing energy grew brighter as if to speak. Jenna shook her head fiercely and caught the fumbling hand on his chest plate with her own.

    “No, don’t, you- you’ve done enough, Zar, okay? I can _finish_ this, I’ve got the railgun I just have to-“

He interrupted her with a mental flick against her mind and Jenna flinched, dumbstruck. The Zar’tak enveloped her small hands that were still clutching his paw with his other two hands while the fourth finally reached into a hidden compartment beneath his chest plate and pulled out something slender that he wordlessly pushed in between her fingers. She recognized the cold glass of a syringe, _her_ syringe, the one he had taken from her suit and she froze, suddenly gripped by cold horror. Did he really expect her to…

    _“Use it.”_ The Zar’tak ordered her simply and already shook his head before she could even think her protest. _“I know that it might activate the interface within you. I know you’re scared… but he’s also afraid of you.”_

The static in his voice made it hard to understand what he was saying and Jenna rolled her shoulders with a groan against the unpleasant burning in the nape of her neck from the strain of the unstable connection but she never let go of his hand. _“The last time you were able to enter his mind as well. Through the interface he leaves his own consciousness just as vulnerable as yours. And this…”_ his plump fingers pressed hers firmer against the emergency syringe filled with Pakrit, _“this is the most amount and purest form of Pakrit Set was ever willing to give to you. It is much more potent than what Nemon administered you earlier… than anything you ever took.”_

The black body shook under her, struggled to keep the life inside him and Jenna thought, just for a moment, to use the Pakrit to save his life but that brief consideration earned her another, harsh mental jab and the five eyes flashed a bitter warning at her.

    _“Don’t you dare. Don’t waste our last chance on ending this once and for all… just to prolong my insignificant life! You have to destroy him, Jenna! Whatever the cost! That’s… that’s the sacrifice I once told you about. To let those that you love go to save the rest of the galaxy… I know…”_ he added with a small, reptilian smile, _“you hate that sort of prophetic rambling. But… you can’t deny… that there’s some truth to it now, can you?”_

He didn’t wait on her to answer that; the glowing eyes faded and closed as his head sank back against the floor. Jenna took one hitching breath and felt his mental barrier around her break apart.

When she was once more able to hear the _Hive_ ’s voice – a single, startled word of utter denial – the needle of the vial in her hands had already sunk into the skin of her forearm and a black, plump finger pressed the trigger of the gas-filled injector on the other end of the syringe.

 

 

The Captain felt his heart give out right along with them when the lights on the _Vengeance_ ’s command bridge suddenly went dark for a terrifying second – they were done for, the blasted ship had received the final blow! – before the emergency power of his mighty vessel kicked in with a low, rising sound, feeding the electric systems of the individual stations with juice again.

The sudden force of the rising blood pressure in his brain, elevated by sheer outrage, made him dizzy and he grabbed the edge of the console he was standing in front of as he inhaled deeply to shout:

    “Does somebody wanna tell me what, in the seven blazes, _that_ was all about?!”

The bridge’s crew didn’t even flinch from his roaring, they were far too focused on estimating the damage caused by the unexpected power loss and coordinating the defense of the gigantic warship against the, still not defeated, armada of the Irkens at the same time. Before the Captain could ask another yelled question, one of the Ilenian techs piped up, his four eyes already struggling, trying to read all the incoming status updates.

    “An- an electromagnetic… or maybe ionized? Uhm, it- it was most definitely a _massive_ energy pulse that just hit us from the planet’s surface, Captain, Sir.” The slim shoulders of the Ilenian suddenly sagged in bafflement. “Co- correction! The pulse was emitted from _below_ the surface! It- it… oh Goddess- Terri, are you seeing these spikes?! Run the scans through the main computer one more time, this can’t be right-“ completely lost in his analysis the tech didn’t notice the other, stocky Ilenian leaning over his shoulder and whipping around towards the Captain in the next second, his four brown eyes round with alarm.

    “It’s Jenna, it can only be her! She’s activated the emergency Pakrit in her suit!” Reliat called out to the Vortian over the general wall of noise and made the chaotic chorus of the other technicians die down immediately.

The young scientist and doctor didn’t care for once that all eyes were suddenly on him, his fingers already dancing skillfully over the screen of a datapad, calling up the initial scans of the tech who had captured the signal, to stream his feed onto one of the wall-mounted monitors.

    “I know this energy profile to a T! Although now it’s- oh… oh my…” he cleared his throat, taken aback. “It’s the strongest outburst of energy we’ve ever read from her. This shock of unleashed energy is what caused the blackout just now. But it didn’t only hit us! The ships of the armada have been forced as well to switch to their backup power for the moment. We should probably go and help the Prerk fighters, though, their ships aren’t equipped with Meekrobian reserve-batteries; they’re an easy target without any drive!”

The Captain threw his hand in the air. “You heard the lad, gents! Send out some of the rescue-transporters immediately to help the Prerk. Radio MedBay, tell ‘em we’re gonna have incoming soon! And pray to yer higher powers that the lass just delivered the long overdue ass-kicking to our enemy!”

    “Captain, what about the countdown? Should we abort?” one of the assistants overseeing command of the artillery guns wanted to know. Grinding his teeth, Commander Gorn looked at his own console, where the timer for the countdown was still running out like sand in his hands. Tork hadn’t sent them any new orders up to now. _Darnit laddie…_

    “We stick to our orders! We don’t know _what_ in the blazes is going on down there, so we follow the first Commander’s instructions until further notice! Back to your stations, we’re not done here! Those dogs are already regrouping again!”

 

 

Something was different - she felt it in an instant.

There had been no distinct transformation this time, no nuclear warhead detonating inside her veins, no conscious sensation of her neural cells splitting. Just a burst of energy and then her consciousness had emerged – changed, rebuilt – and had finally taken control. _Real_ control. It wasn’t ordering her body around anymore, sending out commands and waiting impatiently for the reply in form of muscles moving and cells reacting. It wasn’t stuck inside her body anymore like she was in her suit but instead surrounded it. She had absolute control, over everything, at any time. She didn’t have to actually think of doing something anymore, it just happened.

It felt as if it had always been meant to be this way, smooth, natural, without any hesitation or delay.

 _Perfect_.

Jenna only made use of her optical nerves to conserve energy and knew at the same time that she actually wouldn’t use up any of the Pakrit now, no matter what she would use it for. Because now, finally, the Pakrit had been absorbed by her body, integrated rather than being mere fuel, and she was able to draw energy from her environment, from the atoms surrounding her, the fine up and down of the electrons jumping in their orbital, even from the field of static charge that still wrapped around the _Hive_

 

_(Hive, not any enemy, not really, a victim, a tortured soul, lost, alone, searching, angry, changed, doesn’t let me in, doesn’t attack me why why why?)_

like a protective layer, like an invisible mine field. If she wanted she could keep the Pakrit and its abilities inside her forever, for the rest of her life,

 

_(can’t die with Pakrit, no natural death for me, cells regenerated better, can rebuilt telomeres, no need for food, no metabolites, no waste, pure pure pure pure)_

_(countdown at four hours 29 minutes and 18 seconds, enough time, could make more, could slow time, no need)_

_(rebels suffered 50 percent losses, Prerk 65, Irkens headless without Tallest, many flee, 47 percent losses)_

if the bombs of the _Vengeance_ didn’t kill her first or something else happened that she _hadn’t_ foreseen by now. It was a possibility, still.

 

_(too many possible outcomes, too many variables, uninteresting, unimportant, distracting, blur focus)_

Jenna had no need or use for the suit she was still wearing, the energy field she had created would shield her against any form of physical attack and she could surpass its support system by a mile without breaking a sweat.

It only took a thought, a tiny manipulation of the charged field around her and _Void_ folded back into its belt with a whirring sound. Her body took a relieved breath, freed. All those tiny needles in between her muscles had been a tad irritating now.

 

    _Just look at you._

_(Already doing that, observing myself from every perspective, body levitating a hands breadth above the ground without needing my attention, natural state now, more room for energy)_

_(Does he mean self-reflection?)_

_(Desire in his voice, reverence, greed, pain, hatred, I am more like him than anyone or anything before)_

_Even without me you’re almost already perfect. And all it took was my blood._

She turned around to him after her mind had briefly touched that of the Zar’tak once more. He was still alive, although barely so, as were Set and Tork, which would have reassured and relieved her in any other state of being. Thus she only absorbed the information and didn’t evaluate it. They would be alright.

The _Hive_ , or rather the metal carapace he occupied,

 

_(what are you what are you what are you?)_

shuffled agonizingly slow across the floor with aid of the cables sticking out of its backside until the massive red eye was once more staring at her. Now she even felt the incredibly delicate oscillations in the field of static surrounding him, like a spider’s web, vibrating from the jerks and twitches of a trapped insect, giving the huntress countless clues as to what was happening inside her net.

Jenna felt the ionized particles accelerating into her own electric field or being repelled by it, like waves breaking against her body. And like a spider the _Hive_ waited for an opening in her defenses, lurking hidden in a corner of his web. Because some insects were too big, too dangerous to pounce until they had first exhausted themselves in the sticky strings.

    _“You’re afraid of me.”_ She reminded him calmly and only used her voice for the effect its echoing sound waves had on the static field. They were like tsunamis, crushing through the waves lapping at her skin. _“I could flay you into little metal pieces with my mind alone in this form.”_ To give her words more weight she pushed into one of the barely visible seams in his body and busted it open.

The _Hive_ laughed at that. The sound was still coming from inside her, using the exposed point of her, otherwise, shielded mind the protoform had created inside her, a tainted spot in her own neural system, yet he didn’t latch onto it to overpower her with his consciousness.

 

    _And you know as well as I do that it would not be the end of me._

_(he’s right, construct merely vessel to contain him, like my body, could create a new body if he destroyed this one, just like he can)_

_You can’t destroy me, Jenna; let’s face it, not even in this glorious form of yours. But you can join me. Let us become one. Together we will be complete, perfect, the most powerful entity in this universe! Just imagine what we could create!_

_(lying, lies to himself, wants to destroy, can only destroy, something is wrong with him, broken broken broken)_

_(even I would not be enough, not forever, he would move on, look for a better host, can’t stop, can’t ever be satisfied)_

The longer Jenna analyzed the _Hive_ the more moves got eliminated and the clearer the path she would have to take in the end appeared before her. But even though the _Hive_ had yet to try and take control over the interface inside her, her thoughts didn’t stay hidden from him completely.

 

    _Oh Jenna. Believe me, you would lose a mental fight against me. Did you really think you were the first being with powers like that to oppose me? I’ve existed for eons now and destroyed galaxies with physical properties even the cursed Meekrob didn’t have theoretical models for-_

_“Why do you hate the Meekrob so much?”_ she interrupted the _Hive_ , suddenly curious, and moved to float closer to him. The tentacles made of metal raised in a silent warning in front of her as she drifted up so that she was on eye level with his gleaming lens which was as wide as she was tall. _“Just because they realized right away what you really were before you could even take over the Irkens? The Meekrob I met told me that they had found traces of your existence in the remains of the galaxies you had destroyed even before they uncovered your doings here. And that the only reason they didn’t stop you was so they could study you.”_

He didn’t answer her but the bubbling vibrations in the static around her betrayed his raging anger.

 

_(no, not anger, not hatred, envy, envy envy envy)_

She saw her own glowing body reflected in the glass of his lens, the glaring light from her eyes and within the sickening depths of her eternally mirrored gaze she found the answer.

    _“Because they had something you will never have for yourself...”_

_Don’t you dare, you puny little worm!_

_“True unity.”_

The sudden shock of energy wiped her out of the air and threw her against the wall at the other end of the hangar, where the enormous power of the _Hive_ pummeled her body into the metal like a giant fist while the suffocating force of his unleashing presence crashed down on her mind in a wordless roar.

 

* * *

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mmmmmh, this was so much better to write than the last chapter... mainly because I didn't feel so stiff from the months of not-writing anymore (hah!)  
> seriously though, I am so satisfied with how I got this one done, hope you guys are still hanging in there!! Put your hands in the air, Jenna need all your energy for the spirit bomb!!!!! 
> 
> *kamehamehas herself into the sun*


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